Kenora resident Wes Siemens’ experience at HSC Winnipeg’s Wilf Taillieu Thoracic Surgery Clinic and Endoscopy Unit: “I am so impressed by how quickly I was seen!”
Kenora resident Wes Siemens discovered he might have tuberculosis (a bacterial infection of the lungs), lymphoma (a type of cancer), or sarcoidosis (a rare, but treatable inflammatory disease) after a CT scan showed enlarged lymph nodes.
For six long months in 2024 I was in severe pain, I was waking up ten times a night, and I was living with the anxiety of a possible cancer diagnosis.
My story begins in January when I started getting pains in my back, my chest, and my gut. I have never felt pain like this before. I don’t recall injuring myself. I’m no athlete (unless you count walleye fishing on the Winnipeg River) and my work often finds me at a desk. So this wasn’t something muscular, it was something internal—but what?
I live in Kenora and got an X-ray at the local hospital. There was an abnormality so a CT scan was ordered, and it showed enlarged lymph nodes. The doctor told me I might have tuberculosis (a bacterial infection of the lungs), lymphoma (a type of cancer), or sarcoidosis (a rare, but treatable inflammatory disease).
After tests, my doctors were able to rule out tuberculosis, and then they connected me with a larger Ontario hospital so I could get a biopsy to determine what exactly was going on. For the biopsy, the surgeon would remove a tissue sample and test it. A biopsy would confirm whether I was dealing with a potentially life-threatening lymphoma, or a treatable sarcoidosis.
It was already February and I couldn’t get the appointment with a specialist until April. Then I was later told that I couldn’t get the biopsy until July. That was awful news to hear. I have a wife and two teenage daughters, and I run my own business. If there was a cancer growing inside me, I wanted treatment to start as soon as possible. I couldn’t wait for close to three months for the test!!
I took matters into my own hands and started investigating options in the U.S. Going to the States would have cost me upwards of $50,000 (USD). On top of that, they couldn’t see me for a few months. It was all pretty devastating.
Instead of having to wait months for a biopsy at an Ontario hospital to confirm whether he was dealing with a potentially life-threatening lymphoma, or a treatable sarcoidosis, Wes Siemens was seen the very same week at the Wilf Taillieu Thoracic Surgery Clinic and Endoscopy Unit.
And then, out of the blue, I got a call from Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg. It turns out that the Kenora surgeon had referred me to HSC a couple of days earlier after getting the results of a recent endoscopy to look inside my stomach. HSC could see me that very same week! I was booked for a procedure called an “EBUS” (an endobronchial ultrasound bronchoscopy) in the Wilf Taillieu Thoracic Surgery Clinic and Endoscopy Unit.
During the EBUS, my surgeon—Dr. Sadeesh Srinathan—inserted a scope down my throat and removed tissue from near my lungs for testing. No incision necessary, and I was able to leave the hospital the same day. The EBUS is not a pleasant procedure, but I was thrilled that I would soon have answers—many weeks earlier than I would have had I waited for appointments in the U.S. or the first surgical centre I was referred to in Ontario.
Just a few days after the EBUS, I got a call from Dr. Srinathan with the results and the news I wanted to hear: “You don’t have lymphoma; you have sarcoidosis.”
It hurt to breathe, but I heaved a deep sigh of relief. I am so grateful that HSC serves patients from Northwestern Ontario (and Nunavut) as well as Manitoba; and I am grateful for the care I received from Dr. Srinathan and his colleagues in the Wilf Taillieu Thoracic Surgery Clinic and Endoscopy Unit. And my gratitude extends to the HSC Foundation and its donors for funding this exceptional clinic space and the equipment that is used there.
“I am so grateful that HSC serves patients from Northwestern Ontario (and Nunavut) as well as Manitoba,” said Wes Siemens upon reflecting on the care he received at the Wilf Taillieu Thoracic Surgery Clinic and Endoscopy Unit.
After getting the good news, I was put on a steroid to treat the inflammation and my pain was largely gone in just a few days. I was able to sleep again, my anxiety lifted, and I was able to focus my attention on my family and my business. I am still taking medication and getting frequent tests to make sure the sarcoidosis hasn’t spread or caused any damage, but I feel great.
Manitobans and other patients served by HSC are so fortunate to have the Wilf Taillieu Thoracic Surgery Clinic and Endoscopy Unit. The people who work there are outstanding, and the systems they have in place are working well. I’m so impressed by how quickly I was seen!
Thoracic patient, Wes Siemens: “After getting the good news, I was put on a steroid to treat the inflammation and my pain was largely gone in just a few days. I was able to sleep again, my anxiety lifted, and I was able to focus my attention on my family and my business.”
I’ve experienced the impact of donations to the HSC Foundation firsthand. I urge you to continue supporting the Foundation. When HSC can invest in new technology, new spaces, and new systems, it means a world of difference for all the patients in their care.
Wishing you the best of the season.
Sincerely,
Wes Siemens
P.S. Due to postal disruptions, we continue to encourage donating online or by phone at 204-515-5612 or 1-800-679-8493 (toll-free). For more information, please click here.
