Terry Latham

Terry & Maryla Latham

In 1970, when Terry Latham packed up his family and left his retail tobacco shop in England to come to the U.S. to be closer to his sister, he landed in the construction industry in California.

In 1978, Terry earned his real estate license and several years later became a successful broker. With success came a full life, including travel around the world especially to Poland his wife’s, Maryla, home country. But in early 2010, Terry began to have a “tight feeling in my chest so they gave me antibiotics, which didn’t help at all.” A chest x-ray didn’t show anything significant so he was sent to a pulmonologist who has a CAT and PET scans performed and drained the fluid that was building up in his lung. The fluid tested positive for mesothelioma.

“You don’t know how to react,” Terry says of his diagnosis. He was referred to an oncologist at City of Hope in Duarte, who recommended total removal of his lung after the biopsy confirmed mesothelioma. “The oncologist also recommended I see Dr. Cameron,” he adds.  Dr. Cameron saved my life. He explained everything and we really relied on his knowledge to get us through.” “Best decision ever.  Dr. Cameron is the innovator of the lung-sparing surgical procedure that has become the standard of care. On June 24, 2010, Dr. Cameron operated on Terry.

“You have to be prepared for a different lifestyle with this disease,” Terry explains. “You have to accept your new life. You get emotional, depressed; you rely on family for everything. 2010 was the toughest year of our lives, but you charge on and cherish every day you have here.”