Plainfield woman joins Joliet Slammers at Strike Out Pancreatic Cancer Night – Shaw Local

For nearly twenty years, Audrey Montalto of Plainfield has raised money and awareness for the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network through her community ambassador program, Time for Hope.

Time for Hope will host its annual Strike Out Pancreatic Cancer evening with the Joliet Slammers on Saturday, July 20, at Duly Health and Care Field in Joliet. Montalto created the Slammers event in 2011.

The Strike Out Pancreatic Cancer night begins at 5:30 p.m. with a pancreatic cancer survivor throwing out the first pitch, Montalto said. The actual game begins at 6 p.m. Tickets are $15 each or $20 for tickets plus a T-shirt. The deadline to order tickets with a T-shirt is July 6, Montalto said.

Montalto began raising money in 2005 to honor her parents, Gene and Millie Majka of Orland Park. The couple has done everything together – including battling pancreatic cancer.

Gene and Millie Majka were diagnosed with the disease in 2004 and underwent chemotherapy and radiation together, she said.

Both Gene and Millie Majka died 11 days after the Time for Hope benefit concert, Montalto said. Gene Majka died on Sept. 4, 2005. Millie Majka died on Sept. 6, 2008.

“Pancreatic cancer sneaks up on you,” Montalto said. “It’s not a cancer that presents itself well. It’s usually diagnosed at stage 4. And then not even all tumors are operable. From there, it becomes a nightmare. The good news is that there are new treatments for it.”

For example, testing tumors for certain biomarkers can help determine the best treatment options for each patient, she said.

The Joliet Slammers event is just one of many events Time for Hope hosts to raise money and awareness for the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.

( Pancreatic cancer survivor from Plainfield throws out first pitch at Joliet Slammers game on Saturday )

Montalto sells merchandise at the PanCAN PurpleStride run in Chicago. She and other Time for Hope volunteers participate in the Joliet City Center Partnership’s Light Up The Holidays Festival & Parade in November with a float. She also organizes a casual Time for Hope gala. All donations benefit the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.

And all this work comes in addition to Montalto’s other activities.

“I work full time, cut hair in the evenings and manage my husband’s band,” Montalto said.

From healthy to hospitalized

Gene Majka had just returned from an Alaskan cruise with Millie Majka in August 2004 when he complained of an upset stomach. Montalto noticed his jaundice and went to an emergency room.

Tests suggested a gallstone had blocked the bile duct, Montalto said. But when doctors tried to open the blockage with a stent, they discovered a pancreatic tumor was squeezing the duct, Montalto said. Gene Majka, who had appeared healthy and had never been hospitalized, was now seriously ill, Montalto said.

“We went to Mayo because we heard that miracles happen there,” Montalto said.

Gene Majka underwent the Whipple procedure – a duodenal pancreaticoectomy. The Whipple procedure is a high-risk, complex surgery that, according to the Mayo Clinic, “removes the head of the pancreas, the first part of the small intestine, the gallbladder, and the bile duct.”

Only 15 to 20 percent of patients with pancreatic cancer are eligible for this procedure – and the 4- to 12-hour Whipple procedure could be the only chance of a cure, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

Gene Majka also underwent chemotherapy and radiation, Montalto said.

In December 2004, Millie Majka underwent a CT scan to monitor a stable hemangioma in her liver that she had had for 20 years, Montalto said. Her parents’ insurance had changed, so Millie Majka’s doctors wanted a baseline CT scan, Montalto said.

The scan revealed a tumor on her pancreas,” Montalto said.

“We also took her to the Mayo Center,” Montalto said. “But in her case, the wound was wrapped around the hepatic artery that supplies the liver.”

In short, Millie Majka was not a candidate for Whipple surgery. But Millie’s early diagnosis worked in her favor, and she experienced an “18-month break” after completing chemotherapy and radiation, Montalto said.

“Her tumor levels did not increase, they remained stable,” Montalto said. “During this time, she was able to take care of my father.”

In August 2004, Montalto organized her first fundraiser for the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. Montalto hosted it at the former Pioneer Lanes in Plainfield. Her husband, Mike Montalto’s band, Friday at Five, performed and sold nearly 300 tickets at $5 each. That was more people than the bar could hold, Montalto said.

“They had to close the bowling alley and send the band to the lanes,” she said.

Even today, the five-year survival rate for pancreatic cancer is only 13%, according to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, so Montalto plans to continue raising money and awareness about the disease.

“It really makes me feel good to do this,” Montalto said. “I want to do something to make a difference in the lives of other families so they don’t have to go through what our families went through.”

WHEN YOU GO

WHAT: Strike Out Pancreas Cancer Night

WHEN: July 20

WHERE: Duly Health and Care Field, 1 Mayor Art Schultz Drive, Joliet,

TICKETS: $15 each or $20 for tickets plus a t-shirt. Deadline for t-shirts is July 6. To purchase a t-shirt, email Audrey Montalto at [email protected] or text 815-922-3068.

INFORMATION: Visit pancan.org.