University of North Carolina Athletics
Sylvia Hatchell Heads Toward Season With New Outlook
July 19, 2000 | Women's Basketball
July 19, 2000
When she talked about her medical experiences at a luncheon on July 19, UNC coach Sylvia Hatchell was joined by her team of doctors. Left to right*Dr. Kelly Ballenger, Dr. Shelton Earp (director of the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center), Dr. John Boggess, Sylvia Hatchell, Dr. WIlliam Nebel, Dr. Wesley "Butch" Fowler, and Dr. Linda Van Le. |
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Between travelling to recruit players, running basketball camps that draw thousands of girls to Chapel Hill, and preparing for the coming season, July is always a hectic month for UNC women's basketball coach Sylvia Hatchell. En route to her 15th season in Chapel Hill, however, Hatchell finds herself handling all those duties with a new outlook. In June, she underwent surgery knowing that there was a chance she'd awaken to the news that she had ovarian cancer. Instead, she received a clean bill of health. "I've had people tell me I seem so happy and enthusiastic," Hatchell says. "I'm just happy to be here. Facing something like this makes you appreciate things more and makes you thankful for what you have."
The saga began on May 10, when Hatchell checked her voice mail from a pay phone in the Atlanta airport, just before boarding a flight to Las Vegas, where she was scheduled to speak at a Nike basketball clinic. One of the messages was from Dr. William Nebel, her longtime gynecologist, who told her he was concerned about test results from a recent check-up and wanted her to see a doctor in the gynecologic oncology department at UNC Hospitals. "When I heard that, I just thought, 'Cancer,'" Hatchell said. "I sat through that flight to Las Vegas almost numb."
Back in Chapel Hill, she reported for her appointment at UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, where she worked with a team that included Dr. Wesley "Butch" Fowler, Dr. Linda Van Le, Dr. John Boggess and Dr. Kelly allenger. Hatchell had more tests, and an ultrasound revealed an enlarged ovary with cystic changes and ovarian cyst wall abnormalities, leading the doctors to believe she could have cancer. On May 19, four hours before she was to board a plane for the women's basketball team's two-week team trip to New Zealand and Australia, Hatchell met with Dr. Fowler, chief of the division of gynecology oncology. "Sylvia," she remembers him saying, "This is like at Christmas, when you have a package under the tree and you don't know what's inside it. It looks like we're going to have to open up that package."
For Hatchell, the trip Down Under was one she had always dreamed of taking. In addition to her husband, Sammy, and son, Van, her sister and brother and their families also made the trip. The entire party would spend two days in New Zealand then travel to Australia, where the Tar Heels would play three exhibition games and spend the balance of their time sight-seeing. "It was the trip of a lifetime, someplace I'd always wanted to travel," Hatchell said. "I knew I had to put my medical situation out of my mind, but it was awfully hard."
The team arrived back in Chapel Hill late on June 1 and the next morning at 8 a.m., Hatchell reported for more tests. Again, they indicated the possibility of cancer, and surgery eventually was scheduled for June 8. She arrived at the hospital that morning at 6 a.m., following a sleepless night, and immediately found herself surrounded by familiar faces. Dianne Glover, a close friend who is a head nurse at the hospital, came by to offer support. Sheri Anderson Edwards, one of Hatchell's former UNC players, was the assistant to the anesthesiologist on the surgery.
Hatchell underwent a laparoscopic hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, in which her uterus, cervix and both ovaries were removed. The next thing she remembers was hearing were two of the sweetest words she could imagine: "It's benign." Her husband already had heard the good news. Dr. Boggess snuck out of the surgery to relay the good news to Sammy Hatchell, who was out in the waiting room. "We've still got a lot to do," Dr. Boggess told Sammy, who is the women's basketball and softball coach at Meredith College. "But, I wanted to let you know it isn't cancer."
Hatchell's recovery, the site of which she shifted to her house at Myrtle Beach, S.C., as soon as her doctors gave the OK, has been smooth and successful. It was sped considerably by the fact her surgery was laporoscopic, which means it was done through a tiny umbilical incision instead of a larger abdominal incision. She's going at full speed again, but hasn't forgotten the fear she felt, or the people who helped her through it.
"I'm just thankful I'm at a place like UNC," Hatchell says. "The doctors who took care of me were outstanding, as were the nurses. All of them were up-front and honest with me. As a coach, I'm evaluating people all the time and I expect excellence. Still, I can't say enough good things about the whole experience at UNC."
Her doctors, too, enjoyed the happy ending. "We are so glad that Coach Hatchell's outcome was good," Dr. Van Le says. "Speaking for myself and my colleagues, physicians who take care of patients with ovarian cancer, we appreciate Coach Hatchell's willingness to speak about her experience openly and bring attention to ovarian cancer, a disease with a generally poor outcome, the threat of which women face everyday in their life.
"While ovarian cancer is not as well publicized as other female cancers, there is a great amount of distress and suffering that accompanies the surgery and chemotherapy necessary for treatment of this disease. There is an obvious need to pursue research to find better ways to treat this disease and improve early detection."
Even as she turns her attention to the opponents on the 2000-01 women's basketball schedule, Hatchell plans to stay involved with the battle against ovarian cancer. For every UNC women's basketball season ticket sold this season, Hatchell will donate $5 to ovarian cancer research. (Season tickets will go on sale in Sept.)
"Many women are struggling with this terrible disease," Hatchell says. "I realize how incredibly lucky I am."
