Carol immediately called for an appointment at the Boston cancer center that had treated her successfully for uterine cancer nearly a decade before. But before keeping the appointment, she consulted with Dr. Monica DaSilva, a physician at the Southcoast Health Breast Center.

“The moment I met Dr. DaSilva, I felt very comfortable with her,” she said.

Dr. DaSilva explained Carol’s condition and recommended a treatment plan. She answered all Carol’s questions thoroughly and – importantly – in language that Carol could easily understand.

“If I’d needed an hour, I truly believe she would have given me an hour,” she said.

When Dr. DaSilva assured her that should the need arise, she would refer her to the Boston cancer center that had previously treated her, Carol’s decision was made. The mother of two and grandmother of three would stay with Dr. DaSilva and Southcoast Health.

Carol knows she made the right decision. She says Dr. DaSilva was “excellent” and her staff knowledgeable and responsive. Their office on Rosebrook Way, in Wareham, was an easy drive from Carol’s home in Carver, as was Tobey Hospital, where a biopsy and lumpectomy were performed.

“It couldn’t have been more convenient,” she said. “It was an easy drive from my home — a lot easier than driving to Boston.”

In June, once she had recuperated from her surgery, Carol began radiation treatments at the Southcoast Health Cancer Center in Fairhaven, where her care was overseen by oncologist Dr. Susan Kim and radiation oncologist Dr. Madeleine Sampson.

The staff helped her arrange the more than 20 treatment visits so that Carol’s daughter could drive her there. Once, they even called another doctor’s office to reschedule Carol’s appointment to fit conveniently with a radiation session.

“I didn’t have to pick up the phone,” she said. “They took care of everything. It wasn’t just great – it was amazing.”

A retired secretary and office worker at energy companies, Carol spends her free time knitting and crocheting. Today, she is back to making lace tablecloths and bedspreads and creating baby sweaters and blankets to sell at her church’s thrift shop.

“I am very blessed,” she said. “I’ve had cancer three times and if I have a fourth cancer, I would go again to Southcoast Health. That’s how well I was treated. The care I received was excellent.”

For more information on Southcoast Health Cancer Centers, visit Southcoast Health Cancer Care Centers | Southcoast Health.