Anne Coneys had a dear friend who had ovarian cancer and shared her experiences to educate others. So Anne was familiar with the symptoms when they came on suddenly.

One day she woke up with a bloated stomach. During breakfast, she felt very full after just a few bites and knew something was wrong. She dropped everything she had planned for the day and made an appointment to see her physician.

Within hours of testing, Anne, 59, was diagnosed with stage IIIC ovarian cancer. Within two days, she met with Nimesh Nagarsheth, MD, an Associate Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Science at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Within a week, she had surgery at The Mount Sinai Hospital.

Anne then went for chemotherapy at the Women’s Cancer Program at Mount Sinai Chelsea under the guidance of Stephanie Blank, MD, Director of the Women’s Cancer Program and Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Science at the Icahn School of Medicine.

Anne decided to receive her treatments at Mount Sinai Chelsea because she wanted a smaller place that offered a more personal experience. Her feeling was confirmed from the moment she met Dr. Blank. “Dr. Blank provided options based on the latest research and on my personal situation. She explained  what she felt was the best plan for me, and it allowed me to be part of the process. It’s very important to take an active role in your own treatment.”

Anne says she is very happy she chose Mount Sinai Chelsea. “It’s a calmer, quieter environment. I received excellent personal attention. I felt important,” she says. “The staff became like family to me, and seeing the familiar faces each time I went for treatment gave me great comfort.”

Anne had no early warning signs of the disease, nor did she have a family history of ovarian cancer. But after her diagnosis, she did receive genetic testing and tested positive for Lynch syndrome, which makes her susceptible to ovarian and gastrointestinal cancers. As a result, her family also is undergoing genetic testing. One family member has already tested positive, allowing her to take steps to prevent future illness.

“It’s so important to stay informed and be proactive,” she says. “Mount Sinai gives the patient access to excellent medical care and information throughout treatment.”

Anne completed one course of chemotherapy treatment at Mount Sinai Chelsea and retains her positive outlook.

“Believing you’re going to get better is a major part of the process,” she says. “Stay positive and surround yourself with positive people.”

To her, the motto at the Women’s Cancer Program, ‘Life, with cancer on the side,’ says it all. “At Mount Sinai Chelsea, I was encouraged to enjoy life, not just stress about my cancer.”

Carl Luss, a heart patient at Mount Sinai Union Square, got a second chance at life after suffering cardiac arrest.

“My care was complicated, and I needed to see many people,” he says. “The doctors and nursing staff at Mount Sinai were terrific, and I ended up having heart surgery that saved my life.”

When he retired, Carl decided to see a cardiologist because his family had a history of heart disease. He got a recommendation from his Mount Sinai family physician, Joshua Issack, MD. So he made an appointment with Dennis Finkielstein, MD, a cardiologist and an Associate Professor of Medicine (Cardiology) at the Icahn School of Medicine. He called to come in a few weeks earlier because he had an extremely busy schedule in the months ahead, including doing work on his summer house on Fire Island. He feels extremely lucky the office could see him. He ended up going into cardiac arrest there in the office and was resuscitated by Dr. Finkielstein.

He would later receive two stents and an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD), and was diagnosed with a sclerotic aortic valve. Normally, patients are advised to wait six months before having another heart procedure. But soon afterwards, he developed shortness of breath and angina, so once again, he called Dr. Finkielstein. Dr. Finkielstein saw him immediately.

“I wanted to wait because I had things to do at my summer house, but Dr. Finkielstein insisted that I come in right away,” he says. He ended up having quadruple bypass and aortic valve replacement at Mount Sinai Beth Israel, done by John Puskas, MD, who is Director of Surgical Coronary Revascularization for the Mount Sinai Health System.

“I live in the East Village, so Mount Sinai Union Square is less than a mile away,” he says. “It’s a convenient and wonderful building where I experienced one-stop shopping for all of my medical and health care procedures, from getting blood drawn to seeing the vascular surgeon who treated my leg post op. Best of all, you can go in and set up all of your appointments for one day.”