Cancer patients growing impatient

The last eight months has been a roller coaster ride for Carole Newton. The LaSalle resident was diagnosed with breast cancer in May and had surgery July.

“I’m past the 12 week [mark] now, which means radiation might not be as effective because of all the delays,” said Newton, who has experienced many delays leading up to Monday’s meeting with a radiation oncologist who informed her she was past the 12 weeks post-operation time frame for radiation to be effective and to minimize recurrence.

“If you do continue with radiation, he's like, ‘We'd have to follow you even more closely for reoccurrence,’” Newton said she was told.

She was advised she would have to consider leaving the region to get radiation because of the uncertainty caused by this week’s cyberattack.

“Kingston, Toronto, or London would be your options,” said Newton. “I need to get in now.”

Booking radiation treatments have been affected by the cyberattack leaving Newton, and many others, in limbo.

“[The radiation oncologist] mentioned if [I’m] not going to get into radiation ASAP, then I need to speak to my surgeon for a mastectomy,” said Newton.

In a joint statement Friday, the first since Monday's cyberattack, local hospitals said they are working around the clock to restore systems and are using third-party experts to investigate.

Updates related to the restoration of their systems are expected in the upcoming week.

Windsor Regional Hospital would not comment Friday about what systems were affected and what the plan is until the investigation is complete.

“Until everything is vetted and all the facts are sent out, it's [going to] take some time,” said Frank Abbruzzese, president of AlphaKor.

He pointed out it could take weeks for systems to return to 100 per cent, “Best course of action for everyone out there is to continuously change and update passwords on all platforms, on all applications. Cellphones, log ins, and work stations.”