For nearly five months, Waukesha County Executive Paul Farrow dealt with uncommon abdominal pain.
“If I look back to Memorial Day weekend, there are things that I thought weren’t right,” Farrow said. “I didn’t have a lot of strength. I thought it might be stress-related or that I had a hernia.”
His questions were answered when Farrow made a trip to the emergency room in early August, 2024.
“I received a CT scan in the ER, and that’s when the medical staff diagnosed that there were some anomalies in my abdomen that they wanted me to follow up with a surgeon and see what was going on,” Farrow said.
He had a biopsy and the results came back positive for mucinous adenocarcinoma - a rare type of cancer.
“Paul has a type of cancer we call an ‘unknown primary,’” Farrow’s Ascension Wisconsin oncologist, Leena Varkey Maramatton, MD, said. “We believe that it mostly started in the appendix, so we suspect it’s appendiceal adenocarcinoma that spread.”
“That week after I found out I had cancer was a whirlwind,” Farrow said. “I was diagnosed on Wednesday, by Monday, I met with Dr. Varkey and by Thursday, I had the chemo port put in.”
He began chemotherapy treatments in September and has been continuing his treatment and making arrangements for surgery.
“Ascension Wisconsin’s Sherman Cancer Center is awesome to work with,” Farrow said. “The whole team is incredible. You can feel a very personal response from this team. They know who you are, they know what’s going on and they want to make sure that you're doing the best that you can.”
Farrow has also been using his platform as an elected official to share his cancer journey with others through social media and local news stations.
“When our office shared that I had cancer, the feedback was huge,” Farrow said. “I was hearing stories from people who had cancer or knew people who had cancer and it can be a private journey for some, but they appreciate a voice being out there about what they’re going through and if I can provide that voice for others to not feel alone, I’m happy to make that impact.”
“I think Paul is inspiring for sharing his cancer diagnosis and treatment,” Dr. Varkey said. “Many people are understandably private about their cancer journey, but I think him doing something like this will help a lot of folks out there.”
As Farrow continues treatment, he is keeping a positive mindset. Most importantly, he wants to remind everyone to schedule regular check-ups with their doctor.
“Listen to your body and if you’re uncomfortable, talk to your primary care provider, see what’s going on and get it checked,” Farrow said. “At first, I thought this was just typical stress and it’s far from that. That’s the biggest advice I can give in my position; that an ounce of prevention can go a long way.”
You can watch Farrow’s video diaries detailing his cancer journey on the Waukesha County Executive Facebook page. View his chemotherapy video by clicking here, and his CT scan by clicking here.
