“They’re the hands and feet of Jesus, the masters of killing cancer” said Bobby Slaydon as he talked about his battle with cancer and the care he received at the Northwestern Louisiana Cancer Center.

Bobby was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2015. He underwent a surgery at MD Anderson to remove it in December, 2015, but in June, 2016 the cancer was still there. He underwent 39 radiation treatments from August-September, 2016 at the Cancer Center with Dr. Alex Hnatov.

Bobby chose the NWLCC after his surgery. He was told he needed to stay at MD Anderson for 39 days for his radiation treatments, but Bobby knew Natchitoches had the Cancer Center where he could receive great care locally.

“The doctors and staff at the Cancer Center have been priceless to me and my family,” he said. Like the doctors and staff, Bobby’s family, his wife Karen and their three sons (Logan, Jacob and Nick) have given him nothing but support and encouragement throughout his journey.

Bobby is the administrator for the Natchitoches Medical Specialists and has worked in healthcare since 1988. Overcoming the fatigue was the most challenging part for Bobby, but through the whole process, he only missed one day of work.

“I’m responsible as the administrator for maintaining the day-to-day operations for my employees,” he said. His employees proudly wore “Slaydon Storm Team” t-shirts to support their boss the day before his first treatment. The saying comes from the Bible verse “The anchor holds in the midst of the storm.”

Bobby’s battle isn’t over, but he said he has the doctors and staff at the Cancer Center to see him through. They rejoice with him and they grieve with him. He received a certificate for his last day of radiation treatment in August, 2016. In April, 2017 his PSA started elevating. He called Dr. Hnatov, who immediately ordered bone scans and an MRI. The cancer metastasized to three spots on his spine. Bobby underwent 27 radiation treatments from June-August and still has an additional 5-7 chemo treatments left. The good news is that his PSA has improved by 88%.

“When I first got my diagnosis I thought, ‘not me.’ Cancer is for someone else. As an administrator I’ve heard ‘chemo’ and ‘radiation,’ but until you live it, you have no idea the impact it will have on your life. That’s why having the Cancer Center has been so important to me. I just want to personally thank Dr. Alex Hnatov and Dr. Manish Dhawan and their staff for walking this journey hand-in-hand with me.”