The "RX: Part III - The Ringing Of The Bell" Story

The Ann B. Barshinger Cancer Institute in Lancaster, Pennsylvania

It was an ordinary day.  Sitting in the beautiful Ann B. Barshinger Cancer Institute waiting for my wife to return to the waiting area with her news.  She has been coming to the center every weekday for the past month for treatments to eradicate her breast cancer.  The people who work at this building are some of the nicest and most caring people in the city of Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  

The beautiful hallways of the institute

Doctors, nurses, techni- cians, adminis- trative staff, custodians and even the fellow that will transport you to your car are all wonderful.  Carol has gone through a very taxing month of radiation treatments and hopefully today will be her last.  As I wait, I finally see her exit the treatment rooms with a big smile on her face.  She is smiling for a few reasons, but one of the most memorable was the "Ringing of the Bell."  The tradition of ringing a bell after your final treatment began with a woman by the name of Emma Payton.  Emma was 8 years old when she was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma in 2013.  Her family flew from Manchester, England to Oklahoma City in the United States for treatments at ProCure Proton Therapy Center.  When her treatments were complete she rang a bell that had been installed at the center to mark the celebration.  Her mother was so moved by the ringing of the bell that when she returned to England she popularized the practice in the United Kingdom.  

The ringing of the bell celebrates your last treatment

Carol told me that at the end of her final treatment she was able to ring the bell which served as a testament to all the "hard work and dedication" of the department's nurses, doctors and specialists as well as herself.  Carol said that when she rang the bell everyone there celebrated and before long tears were streaming down the cheeks of every one in attendance.  It was a very moving and celebratory time for all involved in her treatment.  Actually the ringing of a bell at the end of cancer treatment dates back more than two decades in the United States when retired Navy SEAL Admiral Irve Le Moyne introduced the practice when he brought a brass bell to the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston on his last day of treatment.  He explained to the hospital staff that bells are used as a timekeeper device at sea, so sailors associate ringing them with the end of a work shift.  My guess is that Carol's ringing the bell meant much more to her than ending a work shift.  It seems that the Peyton family, which I mentioned earlier in my story, was so moved by the experience that they have now raised funds to pay for over 200 celebratory bells for centers throughout the United Kingdom.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.