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Book chronicles life of daughter who battled cancer
HEPATOCELLULAR CARCINOMA | At a glance
Steve Logston of Wellsville recently published his book, “Even Her Tears Were Yellow,” which is about the life of his daughter, Chelsea Lingenfelter, who died three years ago at 21 from this form of cancer, also known as HCC. Some facts about the disease:
Hepatocellular carcinoma is the most-common type of liver cancer, accounting for about 75 percent of all cases, and is normally diagnosed in people age 50 or older.
Most diagnoses are the result of long-term damage to the liver as well as cirrhosis, the causes of which include alcoholism, hepatitis B or C viral infection and too much iron in the body.
Common symptoms include abdominal pain, especially in the upper-right shoulder area, yellow skin or eyes, an enlarged abdomen and unexplained weight loss.
Treatment depends on how far advanced the disease is, but includes surgery if the tumor has not spread, chemotherapy, liver transplants and ablation, which means destroying the tumor(s).
Prevention measures include treating viral hepatitis, refraining from drinking excess quantities of alcohol and receiving liver-cancer screenings.
Source: U.S. National Library of Medicine
By Sean Barron
WELLSVILLE
Even though she had been diagnosed in October 1995 at age 4 with cancer, Chelsea Lingenfelter tried to maintain a positive attitude throughout her life and acted in most respects as a typical child, teenager and young adult.
Few unusual things stood out about her – which to Steve Logston is the point.
“She was a cheerleader and in the band in high school. She was self-taught in foreign languages and loved sign language,” Logston recalled about his stepdaughter. “When I first met her, I could tell she was very precocious and intelligent but shy.”
Depending on one’s point of view, Lingenfelter’s unremarkable, nonchalant approach to life could easily be seen as remarkable, because she had been diagnosed with hepatocellular carcinoma as a child and had to undergo several surgical procedures and treatments – including eight to 10 rounds of chemotherapy during the first year after receiving the grim news.
Hepatocellular carcinoma, or HCC, is the most-common form of liver cancer, but is rarely detected in young people. Symptoms include pain in the upper abdomen near the right shoulder blade, fever unrelated to any other conditions, an enlarged spleen, jaundice, a decrease in appetite, abdominal swelling and general fatigue and/or weakness, according to the Cancer Treatment Centers of America.
When she was 8, Lingenfelter had a living-organ donor transplant at the Cleveland Clinic in which part of the liver of her mother, Joni Logston, was given to her. Beforehand, she had been on transplant lists at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital in Cleveland, Steve said.
On Feb. 18, 2013, however, Lingenfelter died after losing her battle with liver cancer. She was 21.
Logston and his wife, Joni, spoke recently from their state Route 39 home about their daughter’s life and achievements. He also discussed his new book that chronicles her life, titled “Even Her Tears Were Yellow” (Austin Macauley Publishers Ltd., London, $13.95).
The book’s two main purposes are to tell Lingenfelter’s story and promote what Logston sees as the importance of organ donation, he noted.
Logston, who grew up in nearby Chester, W.Va., and retired after having taught 36 years, mainly as a middle-school teacher in Wellsville, met Lingenfelter when she was 7 and weighed a mere 35 pounds.
After the transplant, Lingenfelter’s liver functioned normally for 14 years with few glitches. She played flute in the Wellsville High School band while also taking college-level courses and, after graduating in 2010, spent one year at Kent State University in East Liverpool before transferring to Ashland University in Ashland, he continued.
“It was huge for her to go to Ashland,” partly because it marked the first time Lingenfelter had been away from home for any length of time, added Joni, a licensed-practical nurse who will soon start to work at The Orchards of East Liverpool, a local nursing home.
Even though her health began to deteriorate during her time at Ashland University and she needed another transplant, Lingenfelter shunned others’ pity and sympathy, Logston recalled, adding that she remained upbeat until she died at the Cleveland Clinic during transplant surgery.
In his book, Logston also describes the closeness he felt toward his daughter, as well as how she continues to inspire him, his wife and many others.
“We had a really great relationship. She and I had a lot of levity and fun,” he said.
“I tell people, ‘When you read this, you’re going to cry, but you’re also going to laugh.’”
“She just wanted to be treated normally,” Joni added.
Logston’s book is available at amazon.com.