Vorshay’s owner battling cancer, hopes to encourage others to get checked
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — The owner of Vorshay’s Cocktail Lounge in downtown Wichita is fighting for her life. She went in for a colonoscopy and learned she had cancer.
Colorectal cancer is the second-deadliest cancer in the United States.
Natalie Peters hopes her story encourages others to get checked for colon cancer early.
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No major symptoms, no family history of cancer. Natalie said her diagnosis of rectal adenocarcinoma left her in disbelief.
“What’s happening? This is so crazy. I just came in here to let you check out everything and make sure I was fine. I thought I was supposed to be fine, and it wasn’t,” said Natalie.
Doctors think the cancer is stage two or three, but they will not know if it has spread until she gets a pelvic scan. Natalie starts chemo in April to shrink the tumor before doctors try to remove it. She is terrified of what the future will bring.
“I felt my friends port yesterday, and I was like, ‘Oh my god. It feels like an alien. It’s terrifying, and I have to have chemo two hours a day for two days a week,” said Natalie.
Support comes from employees, who are now like family. Kayte Monk has worked at Vorshay’s since the doors opened and is heartbroken about the diagnosis.
“It was very shocking and seeing them hurt and go through all of this, it’s scary, it really is. There are no words. She’s probably one of the toughest ladies I know. I do believe she can beat this,” said Monk.
Natalie’s husband, Steve, said his wife is the strongest person he knows.
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“If I had got this diagnosis, I’d probably be off in the corner somewhere, rocking back and forth and crying, and she’s convinced that she’s going to be good, she’s going to beat it,” said Steve.
The motivation to fight comes from her three kids and her business.
“Literally the only thing that keeps my mind off having cancer because that’s literally all you think about. If it wasn’t for this, I would’ve just lost it,” said Natalie.
A colorectal surgeon with Ascension Via Christi says this type of cancer is the second most common among men and women.
According to the National Cancer Institute, the rate of colon and rectal cancer in Kansas from 2016 to 2020 was about 39%.
The surgeon says they are detecting this cancer in people younger than age 45. The main message getting screened early.
“Polyps, which are cancer, can be removed in a colonoscopy and can be detected with other screening tools. It’s very important to catch these pre-cancers or cancers before they have spread in order to have a really good outcome,” said Dr. Kelly Winter, a colorectal surgeon from Ascension Via Christi.
Ascension Via Christi is offering free colorectal screening kits to those 45 and older. You can request your kit by calling 316-268-5890.
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