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A few members of Mr. Zantow’s care team<\/p><\/div>\n
Technologist Angela Albarano ran into the control room. \u201cHe\u2019s here!\u201d she announced, and everyone jumped into action. The staff trooped single-file to the waiting room carrying cupcakes, meatballs, chips, and cheese, cheering and clapping as soon as they saw Mr. Zantow.<\/span><\/p>\n Mr. Zantow has prostate cancer that has metastasized, or spread, to the bones. This often causes debilitating pain.<\/span><\/p>\n The radiation therapy he’s receiving at\u00a0UVA Nuclear Medicine consists of consecutive injections of\u00a0Xofigo, a drug used for individuals with prostate cancer that has become resistant to medical or surgical treatment and has spread to the bones. In some cases, Xofigo can help extend the life of the recipient and has a solid track-record of improving quality of life. <\/span><\/p>\n This was certainly the case for Mr. Zantow. \u201cAs far as results go, you can\u2019t beat this,\u201d he said. \u201cBefore I started these treatments I was not doing well. I was in pain all the time. I measure the success by the amount of pain medication I take, and it\u2019s plummeted.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The small celebration organized by some of the staff attracted many other staff members who came and congratulated Mr. Zantow, talking and laughing with him. When asked what he thought about the party he said, \u201cThis is a shock to the system!\u201d He told those around him, \u201cI hope everybody gets to enjoy it because you all have made my life much more enjoyable in these recent months.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The Nuclear Medicine staff is quite fond of\u00a0Mr. Zantow and the feeling is certainly mutual. \u201cBecause of the nature of [my condition] I get around to different areas of the hospital. This is my favorite place,\u201d he said. <\/span><\/p>\n Mr. Zantow came to Charlottesville in 1978. \u201cWhen we moved,\u201d he said, talking of himself and his wife, \u201cwe had criteria. It had to be a college town, it had to have nice weather, and we both wanted hills.\u201d Charlottesville fit the bill.<\/span><\/p>\n After the move, Mr. Zantow took a job as a proofreader. When he aced a computer aptitude test administered by his company, he launched his career as a computer programmer. \u201cIt was a tremendous break,\u201d he said. <\/span><\/p>\n Though now retired, Mr. Zantow enjoys listening and playing music, specifically the guitar and piano.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Helen Keller once said, \u201cAlthough the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it.\u201d And this is exactly what Mr. Zantow and the Nuclear Medicine staff are doing; celebrating small but\u00a0very important victories in the midst of difficult\u00a0times.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Nuclear Medicine Staff Throw Party for Xofigo Patient When Richard Zantow completed his sixth and final round of radiation therapy, the staff in Nuclear Medicine baked cupcakes, blew up balloons, and prepared a giant crockpot full of meatballs. Technologist Angela Albarano ran into the control room. \u201cHe\u2019s here!\u201d she announced, and everyone jumped into […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":198,"featured_media":5036,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[1,51],"tags":[94],"class_list":["post-5035","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-radiology-stories","tag-intranet"],"acf":false,"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/med.virginia.edu\/radiology\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/191\/2017\/06\/editedIMG_3206.jpg\")
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