Des Moines oncologist & adventurer urges more physical activity for all, even cancer patients
~by Chuck Offenburger, RRVT
The Raccoon River Valley Trail Association holds its eighth annual banquet this Saturday, Feb. 21, in West Des Moines, and all 250 tickets were sold by early last week. Guest speaker Dr Richard Deming, the radiation oncologist, global adventurer and philanthropist, has proven to be a very popular draw.
Deming, 61, heads the cancer treatment program at Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines. He has done very well in his medical career, and he’s now investing a lot of his income in programs that help others.
He is also a Navy veteran, mountain climber, long distance runner, bicycle racer, triathlete, RAGBRAI fun-leader and outstanding storyteller. He personally leads expeditions by cancer patients and others to exotic, beautiful and sometimes rough places that challenge the body, mind and spirit. He does that through his four-year-old organization “Above + Beyond Cancer,” which organizes the adventures for cancer survivors, patients and some additional care-givers.
They have climbed to the base camp of Mount Everest in Nepal, and climbed to the summits of the 20,000-foot peak Imja Tse in Nepal, Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, and Machu Picchu in Peru. They’ve also participated in bicycle races and tours, and for six years he has taught “spinning classes” for cancer patients on exercycles at the YMCA Healthy Living Center in West Des Moines.
Deming said exercise is key to effective cancer prevention and treatment.
“We’ve made tremendous headway with this disease,” Deming said. “There are now 15 million cancer survivors in this country. Not all are cured, but we’ve learned that it’s a chronic disease that can be managed to provide people with many more years of life.
“And yet, this year alone 600,000 people will die of cancer — and about two-thirds of those are from cancers that are preventable. We need to make sure everyone understands that. The most common causes are tobacco, and right behind that come inactivity, obesity and poor nutrition. We can do something about all of those. For example, there are good studies now that show that if you engage in physical activity while you are going through cancer treatment, it reduces the impact of the side effects from the treatment, and it also has some positive impact on treatment outcomes.”
The RRVT Association does all the marketing and promotion for the 89-mile paved trail which goes through Greene, Guthrie and Dallas Counties and connects to the Des Moines metro trail system. Trail user numbers have soared the last two years, with the completion of a new “north loop” that added 33 miles and five more towns to the trail. The banquet, which has both silent and live auctions, is the group’s one public fundraiser of the year.
Presenting sponsors for the banquet are Morgan Stanley financial advisors and Scheels sporting goods, both in West Des Moines. Sponsoring the speaker is All Ability Cycles, the bike shop in in Jefferson.
More details on all RRVT events are available at www.raccoonrivervalleytrail.org.
