South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Second Chances
Stories of Hope
By Brian C. Feldman
Monday, May 29, 2006
Amy Fischer has found helping abandoned cats a way to divert her attention from debilitating treatment for a second bout of cancer.
When she's not too sick from her medication, Fischer, 57, of Boca Raton volunteers at Feline Friends, a no-kill shelter in Deerfield Beach. Already overpopulated with 75 felines, the shelter is bracing for the annual baby boom, so Fischer's volunteer shifts, although irregular, are appreciated.
"Amy is fabulous," said shelter director Cindy Weber. "She has a wonderful attitude about life and volunteering. She is really warm and caring and one of the funniest people I have met. With all of her problems, she still has a great attitude and never appears to be down, which I find amazing."
Fischer was in remission from breast cancer for 18 years when she was diagnosed in 2000 with chronic myelogenous leukemia. It is a condition in which the bone marrow makes too many white blood cells, according to The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Web site.
"I went to my family doctor after a blood test as part of my routine physical checkup, and my doctor never got past the white blood count," Fischer said.
Fischer supported her husband Alan, 54, through treatment for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, a form of lymphatic cancer.
"It's hard to say what I felt with that diagnosis, after dealing with breast cancer and Alan's illness," she said. "I was in disbelief, and a little bit numb."
Fischer's doctor sent her to an oncologist to discuss having a bone marrow transplant, but she decided Gleevec, a new drug in clinical trials, would be a better alternative. At the time, Fischer was working for an ophthalmologist, but had to resign because of the drug's side effects.
"I worked there through the first few weeks, but I got very ill," she said. "I was weak with dizzy spells. It was hard to concentrate and I decided to leave work. Suddenly, I had a lot of time on my hands, and I had to start thinking of what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. Although for the first several months I really couldn't do anything, I wanted to find something that would enable me to have a fuller life."
Her sister recommended she channel her time into something she was passionate about. She considered volunteering to help the hearing impaired, and took sign language lessons. As part of her search, she visited the Feline Friends shelter, and things clicked. I'm not there to pet the cats," said Fischer, who has two cats of her own. "I medicate, feed and clean. As a no-kill shelter, our space is limited and with adoptions slow this time of year, we have lots of cats to care for."
Fischer said she maintains a positive attitude. "You get out of life what you put into it. I don't have the time for self-pity. Volunteering there pulls me right out of my problems."
