My Best Friend Treated My Neck Cancer

“Dr. James Suen and I grew up together in Dermott. We lived just four houses apart, our moms fished together, and he’s always been my best friend. So when he told me in the mid 1980s of the vision for a new Cancer Institute at UAMS, I was eager to help,” Jerry Atchley said. 

“As a member of the Cancer Institute board I was excited to see it become an international success. My commitment to the Cancer Institute became more personal when I was diagnosed with a rare neck cancer. In a fortunate coincidence, the world’s authority on such cancers happened to be my friend, James Suen.

“Today my recovery is sustained by the promise of the new Cancer Institute addition for the people of Arkansas. More than ever, I want to see it soar to new heights,” he said.