By Lisa Kaylor, Wellstar MCG Health Medical Center
After completing radiation therapy at Wellstar Georgia Cancer Center’s Radiation Oncology Monday, Shannon Williams rang the bell, signaling the end of her cancer treatment.
Then she did something patients at the center will be able to do from now on – she placed a pink thumbprint on a bucolic mural of a tree in a field, also celebrate the end of her treatment. Her thumbprint is the first of many who will commemorate their cancer journeys by placing their thumbprint in the color of their cancer ribbon. The thumbprints will fill out the tree’s foliage and even fill the ground as fallen leaves.
“Not every patient wants to ring the bell,” Williams said. “Some have already done it before, and
others don’t want to make a big scene. This is a great way to celebrate them, too. And if someone does want to ring the bell, they can do both. It’s a way for every person, in every circumstance, to feel honored.”
The thumbprint tree was created as an alternative to the traditional bell-ringing ceremony that marks the end of treatment. While many patients choose to ring the bell, others prefer something more private. The tree provides a lasting way to honor every journey.
Williams is not only a patient but is also a radiation nurse at the center, caring for patients while going through her own journey with breast cancer. She found herself surrounded by extraordinary acts of kindness from her coworkers, and said they lightened her workload, encouraged her daily, and even surprised her by showing up in matching T-shirts on a day when fatigue was especially heavy.
“It was right at a time when I was wearing down, and they lifted me up,” she said. “They’ve done
so many lovely things for me that they didn’t have to do. I never felt alone. I always had a whole
team on my side,” she said.
For Williams, pressing her thumb into the mural was more than symbolic — it was personal.
“It’s special to be able to say, ‘I know what you’re going through,’ to other patients,” she said.
“And it’s meaningful to have something permanent here, where you can look up and see your
thumbprint and know, ‘I was treated here.’”
Family, colleagues and friends surrounded Williams Monday as she rang the bell and placed
her thumbprint. She said the journey has been filled with challenges but also unexpected blessings.
“It’s been a blessing to be here, to be cared for by people who love me, and to walk through this
with them,” she said. “I’m just grateful.”
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