In God's hands

Cancer cannot keep Barb Roland out of the classroom.

The K-6 Title I teacher and literacy coordinator for Summerland Public School in Ewing has been battling various oral cancers for the past 11 years.

However, that has not stopped the Oakdale woman from teaching and working with students, which is her passion.

"I enjoy helping children grow and learn," Roland said. "My doctor told me to do what I love, and this is it. I am taking precautions with COVID, as we all are doing."

Her battle with cancer began in 2009, when she was having dental issues and was sent to Dr. Jon Stineman, an oral surgeon in Norfolk.

"He noticed some white patches, removed them and sent them to a pathologist," Roland said. "It came back that they were cancerous."

Stineman sent her to Creighton University's School of Dentistry in Omaha to work with Dr. Stephen Hess, an oral pathologist.

"They said I had leukoplakia – precancer cells that could turn cancerous," Roland said.

According to the Mayo Clinic, "With leukoplakia, thickened, white patches form on your gums, the insides of your cheeks, the bottom of your mouth and, sometimes, your tongue. These patches can't be scraped off."

"They used a NASA laser machine in my mouth to try to kill bad cells in hopes that good cells would grow," Roland said. "I did this until 2015."

In October 2015, she developed a growth on her lip, which the oral surgeon Stineman tried to remove, but he could not.

Three months later, Stineman sent Roland to the Methodist Estabrook Cancer Center located on the campus of Methodist Hospital in Omaha.

She was diagnosed with verrucous carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and various other oral cancers.

"They removed that tumor on my lip and a tumor growing upward on my tongue," Roland said. "My cancer had been limited to just my mouth and mainly my left side. I do have some areas on my larynx and esophagus they are observing."

She has undergone many oral reconstruction surgeries at Methodist Hospital that have been overseen by Dr. Robert Lindau III, who specializes in head and neck oncology.

"They have done free flap surgeries where they took veins out of my arms and connected them to the bottom part of my mouth," Roland said. "The left side worked, but the surgery on the right side would not flow properly.

"They flew in medical leeches from New York to try to stimulate the right side and I ended up back in surgery to have that free flap removed," she said. "I have also had skin grafts using my skin and animal skin."

She also underwent chemotherapy and radiation treatments May-July 2019 at the Estabrook Cancer Center.

"With radiation, I had to wear a head mask and they attached it to a table in which you could not move," Roland said. "I had to have a feeding tube put in as well."

The most recent surgery she underwent was late last year at Methodist Hospital and consisted of having 70 percent of her left palate and cancer under her tongue removed.

"I have had speech and swallowing therapy," Roland said. "I also practice my reading mastery after each surgery to help with my speech.

"I was also set up with a mouth prothesis to help cover the palate area," she said. "Sometimes it is painful to wear."

With all of the oral reconstruction surgeries she has undergone, Roland has developed lymphedema and has used several therapies to help move lymph fluid within her body.

According to the American Head and Neck Society, "Lymphedema is a condition marked by swelling of the soft tissues due to accumulation of lymph. Lymph is a substance consisting mostly of water, but also containing proteins, chemicals and white blood cells.

"Lymphedema is very common among patients who have undergone head and neck surgery or radiation therapy. Up to 75 percent of patients will manifest some signs and symptoms of lymphedema after treatment for head and neck cancers."

"I have tried a tactile compression machine, but that did not seem to work," Roland said. "The best is manual. I also have a compression mask that I wear at night to help with this."

She noted all of the support she has received from people during her battle with cancer.

Those people include her husband, Byron, who works at Guarantee Roofing and Sheet Metal in Norfolk, and their 23-year-old son, Colby, who lives in Oakdale and works as a welder for AGI's Sentinel Building Systems in Albion.

Roland, who recently started wearing a portable microphone system to help her voice projection, noted she lives her life one day at a time.

"Throughout this journey, I have had great support from family, friends, church family, school family and community," Roland said. "My faith keeps me positive."

"I enjoy reading inspirational quotes and devotions," she said. "I enjoy the positive cards and notes people send. During treatments, students made cards and I read them every day."

Her family, friends, co-workers and students have held several fundraisers for her over the years to help pay for her medical expenses.

"These were greatly appreciated," Roland said. "I have been blessed with prayer shawls and prayer quilts from faculty, Northern Tier Literacy Council, church and a friend. They give comfort and joy."

Roland, who will celebrate her 55th birthday on Friday, Aug. 28, also receives comfort and joy through teaching.

She was encouraged to become a teacher by educators at Neligh-Oakdale High School in Neligh, where she graduated in 1983.

"I knew when I was in third grade that I wanted to be a teacher," Roland said. "I was inspired by Marlene Peterson and Sharon Kinnan. They have both been great teachers and mentors for me."

She graduated in 1987 from Wayne State College with a bachelor's degree in education and in 2001 from Wayne State with a master's degree in education with a special endorsement for English as a second language.

Roland has been a teacher for 33 years, with her first year at a rural schoolhouse – Boone County District 49 – near Albion and the past 32 years in Ewing.

"At Ewing, I have been mentored and inspired by previous teachers Janel Sisson and Jolene Kurpgeweit – both deceased – and Amy Ritter," Roland said. "She is still going strong and has a few more years here than me.

"School colleagues become my family and I am so blessed by all who I have worked with and those I am currently working with," she said. "Ewing has a great school and community."

Greg Appleby, principal of Summerland Public School's Ewing site, has worked with Roland for nearly three decades.

"I have had the great pleasure to work with, as a fellow teacher and now administrator, Barb Roland for 28 years at Ewing Public Schools and now Summerland Public School," Appleby said.

"Barb inspires each one of us every day with her toughness, courage, and her love of teaching and working with kids," he said.

"Barb is truly in education for all of the right reasons as she wants to make a difference every day for her students and to watch them grow and develop to the best of their abilities," he said.

As for her battle with cancer, Roland noted her doctors have not figured out why she has developed so many oral cancers.

Roland was given two options going forward after her most recent positron emission tomography scan.

She underwent the PET scan – an imaging test that helps reveal how a person's tissues and organs are functioning, according to the Mayo Clinic – in July at the Estabrook Cancer Center.

"That was to go on hospice with a possible six-month survival based on how fast cells are growing in my mouth or try immunotherapy to help prolong my survival," Roland said of her two options.

She has only undergone one immunotherapy treatment at the Estabrook Cancer Center so far due to some side effects from the treatment.

"I am on medication at this time to treat the side effects and then they will let me know at my next visit what the plan is going to be," Roland said.

HOBBIES:

Barb Roland of Oakdale has many hobbies that keep her busy, including spending time with her family and friends.

"I enjoy reading," Roland said. "I am a member of the Neligh Lions Club and enjoy being active when I can. I enjoy helping in my community and being active when I can."

She also loves to cook and bake.

"I'm an amateur cake decorator," Roland said. "I've made graduation, wedding, anniversary and birthday cakes for family and friends."

In addition, she loves penguins and enjoys hunting and fishing, but she has not gone in a long time.