Join the Get a MOVE on Cancer 5K on Aug. 31
By Candace Gwaltney
July 9, 2024
MOVE participant celebrates her regained strength with community walk and epic trip
After multiple procedures for pancreatic endocrine tumors over four years, Jennifer Phelps could tell her body was becoming weak. Her most recent surgery in 2022 required a biliary drain placement that went between her ribs, causing consistent pain and making everyday movements more difficult.
Tracking her movement with an Apple watch, Phelps could see how few steps she took each day. She said she started seeing herself more as someone who is sick.
Phelps’s physician referred her to the Multidisciplinary Oncology Vitality and Exercise (MOVE) program at the Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center. Grounded in research, the MOVE program helps patients at any point during their cancer experience maintain, improve, and sustain their health and physical function.
Phelps started going to weekly in-person sessions in January 2023.
Instead of going home after work to rest, she was walking more and lifting weights because of the MOVE program. The program helped Phelps transform as she recovered from the multiple surgeries.
“What it did was it reminded me that I was strong,” Phelps said. “I went to sessions with Dani [Halsey] and Kim [Bowers] and working with them raised my spirits.”
The MOVE program’s multidisciplinary team integrates functional assessments, rehabilitation sessions, and exercise prescriptions into a supportive and comprehensive care plan for people with cancer.
“Exercise has important measurable benefits in cancer outcomes - including less toxicity and better treatment response - but also with immeasurable outcomes in patient empowerment and confidence,” said Tarah Ballinger, MD, medical director of the MOVE program and the Vera Bradley Foundation Scholar in Breast Cancer Research at IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Phelps gained both physical and mental strength from the program, and she built camaraderie with other MOVE participants. She recalls her competitive spirit kicking in as she walked faster to keep up with another MOVE participant. She saw the strength in others and herself as she participated in individual and small group sessions. The MOVE sessions served as regular check-ins for her, giving her reassurance that she really was doing OK.
“I give the MOVE program tremendous credit not just for my physical health, but for my mental and spiritual health,” she said.
As a result of the MOVE program, Phelps said she was physically ready when the biliary drain was removed in November 2023.
“It was this transformation of being ready to transition to my post-cancer life,” she said. “They helped me know that I was strong and that my body was still strong—and I was strong enough to be there for my kids.”
A reason to celebrate and Get a MOVE on Cancer
As a single mom to 15-year-old twins, Phelps celebrated her post-cancer life with a trip to Iceland where she was able to enjoy hiking to the top of waterfalls and swimming in the thermal pools. She described the trip as amazing and magical—and something she physically could not have enjoyed without the help from MOVE.
Another celebratory milestone happened last fall when Phelps and her kids participated in the Indiana Women’s Running Festival’s inaugural Get a MOVE on Cancer walk. The event helps to raise money for the MOVE program at the IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Phelps shared with her family and friends her fundraising page for the walk so they could rally behind her and support the program that they had made such a huge difference in her recovery.
“I was able to share how important the MOVE program was in keeping me going,” Phelps said. “It was nice to have a way for all of these people who have supported me to give a bigger cause.”
This year’s Indiana Women’s Running Festival will take place on Saturday, Aug. 31, in Carmel, Ind. This is one of the largest women’s-only half marathons in the Midwest. IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center and IU Health Foundation are the title sponsor of the Get a MOVE on Cancer 5K. Registration is open.
MOVE program supporters and participants can register and join the cancer center’s team. When registering, select “Run Club or Fundraising Teams” and then join the “IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center” team. As part of the registration form, select “Charity” on the donation page, and then select “Get a MOVE on Cancer.”
As part of the largest women-only running event in Indiana, participation is for individuals who identify as female. Male supporters are welcome to donate to the MOVE program and attend as race supporters and spectators.
Visit the MOVE program page to find downloadable training programs for walking or running the 5K.
