Stage 4 Cancer Patient Saved by Pump That Delivers Chemo

Helen Demestihas received two life-changing phone calls on her 19th wedding anniversary in July 2024. The second one told her she had stage 4 colorectal cancer at just 49 years old.

What started as symptoms she mistook for a urinary tract infection in May 2024 quickly escalated. Within two months, doctors discovered a 7-centimeter tumor in her colon and rectum, plus 12 cancerous tumors covering both lobes of her liver.

The diagnosis felt like a death sentence. The five-year survival rate for stage 4 colorectal cancer sits between 13 and 18 percent.

Demestihas, who had spent decades working for patient advocacy nonprofits, never imagined she'd become the patient fighting for her life. She'd always been healthy, never missed annual checkups, and lived an active life with her husband and daughter in Nashville, Tennessee.

Surgery would have been her best option, but two of the liver tumors were attached to main arteries. Doctors told her the risk was too high and she'd need aggressive chemotherapy instead, possibly for the rest of her life.

She started treatment in September 2024 at the Sarah Cannon Cancer Center at TriStar Centennial. The chemo worked, shrinking the primary tumor to almost nothing and reducing the liver lesions. But it wasn't enough to make surgery safe.

Then her oncologist, Dr. Meredith Pelster, suggested something different. Hepatic artery infusion, or HAI chemotherapy, uses a titanium pump implanted in the abdomen with a catheter connected to the liver's main artery.

The pump delivers high-dose chemotherapy directly to the liver while minimizing side effects to the rest of the body. The targeted approach attacks liver tumors far more effectively than traditional IV chemotherapy.

Demestihas agreed to the procedure. The specialized treatment is only available at select cancer centers across the country.

Why This Inspires

Helen's story shows how medical innovation is turning terminal diagnoses into treatable conditions. HAI therapy represents a growing trend in precision medicine, where treatments target specific organs rather than flooding the entire body with drugs.

The technology also offers hope to the rising number of younger adults being diagnosed with colorectal cancer. Cases in people under 50 have been increasing, often caught at later stages because screening isn't top of mind for younger people.

Demestihas admits she put off getting a colonoscopy even though her mother's 2019 colon cancer diagnosis meant she should have been screened earlier. The pandemic hit, life got busy, and the dreaded prep seemed like something she could postpone until 50.

Now she's using her voice to encourage others not to wait. Getting screened could mean catching cancer early enough for simpler, more effective treatment.

Her message is simple: don't let fear or inconvenience delay a test that could save your life.