Vim & Vigor - Summer 2009 - (Page 26)
p d tv star patrick dempsey helps his of others—cope with cancer mom—and thousands his mother’s son by dennis mccafferty Years before he emerged as “Dr. McDreamy” on the hit ABC-TV medical drama Grey’s Anatomy, actor Patrick Dempsey struggled with a stunning health development within his own family: In 1997, his mother, Amanda, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Dempsey was a respected working actor, but hardly a major star with unlimited resources to afford the best treatment in the world. He was—like so many of us—a son who suddenly needed to do whatever he could for a loved one, with no real idea how to begin. “I had just started dating my wife, and I brought her home to Maine,” recalls Dempsey, 43, in a recent conversation with Vim & Vigor. “Mom wasn’t feeling well, which was so unlike her. … During our visit, she went to the doctor and she received the diagnosis, which was devastating.” He was overwhelmed by the amount of information he needed to take in. “You also question how you can provide all the love and support that your mom will need,” he says. “I was working on the West Coast, and it’s not easy to get to Maine from there. There’s a lot to consider, and it’s difficult to process all the information and feelings that come at you.” 26 vim & vigor · su mme r 2 009
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vim & Vigor - Summer 2009
Vim & Vigor - Summer 2009
Healthy Steps
Nurturing Health
Contents
Finally... Relief from Pain
Helping Hearts
Take Action
Check Your Tech
Small Wonders
Positively Healthy
On the Cover
Culinary Cures
In a Heartbeat
Make it Last
Safe Harbor
5 Million Lives
Under the Cyberknife
Around the Region
Ask the Experts
Community Connections
Vim & Vigor - Summer 2009
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