Survivor Story: Jaimie Mattes: a model for surviving colon cancer
Jaimie Mattes modeled for the 2009 Colon Club Colondar
Jaimie Mattes is a remarkable 39-year-old colon cancer survivor. I say remarkable, because Jaimie has not been silent with his recovery. He has been loud. In 2008, he won the Get Your Rear in Gear Advocacy Award from the Colon Cancer Coalition. He also modeled for the 2009 Colondar and volunteered for a Minnesota Cancer Task Force.
Even as the president of the Colon Cancer Coalition, I never thought that my own story would be on the same page as that of a cancer survivor. I have never suffered the agony of battling cancer. But over the last month, I’ve been writing about my personal journey back to healthy living as I try to get my rear in gear. I was honored to sit down with Jaimie recently to talk about his diagnosis and treatment and about the healthy changes he has made in his life as a result of his experience.
Jaimie Mattes during our interview
Jaimie’s decision to get his rear in gear came after his cancer experience. He had lived a fast-paced life as a sales manager for a hotel chain, eating meals on the go and taking no time to exercise. Healthy eating and exercise were simply not a part of his life, although he admired his wife, who Jaimie says, worked out for both of them.
But Jaimie’s life changed after his diagnosis and treatment of colon cancer. His diagnosis came just one week prior to his 32nd birthday. There were no lymph nodes affected and physicians were able to remove the cancer, but he was left with a colostomy bag and six months of chemotherapy. Jaime knew his life would never be the same.
First, Jaimie’s diet changed. After years struggling with ulcerative colitis, Jaime had already learned to cut back on eating fruits, red wine and nuts. Now avoiding those foods was imperative. But Jaimie learned to enjoy eating. No more whip it down the pipe meals for Jaimie. He takes the time to taste life. Every once in while, he enjoys ice cream. He is also 40 pounds lighter at his own decision – not the cancer’s decision.
Fitness has also been an important part of his recovery. In 2008, I was one of the lucky people who watched Jaimie cross the finish line at both the Rochester and Twin Cities Get Your Rear in Gear 5k events. At the end of the Rochester race, he held up his hand, as if to hold off the friends and family who wanted to congratulate him on his accomplishment. This was a moment that he had to experience alone. Jaimie has no memory of that finish line experience, but eventually his beautiful family greeted him with open arms. Both myself and Colon Cancer Coalition Executive Director Cindy Iverson had to wait to get our hugs. He probably never knew how much his strong finish meant to those of us who watched him finish the 5k in less than 30 minutes, but for us his accomplishment represented the gift of life. Months later Jaimie ran the Twin Cities Get Your Rear In Gear 5K, this time finishing four minutes faster than his previous time.
When I asked Jaimie what Get Your Rear in Gear meant to him, he talked about the kinship of his fellow cancer survivors, and about the family experience. To Jaimie, Get Your Rear in Gear is the opportunity to be with family and celebrate life. Jaimie feels at home with cancer survivors and the families who love someone affected by colorectal cancer.
See all of the 2009 Colon Club Colondar models at Colonclub.com
