Nevada woman lives a special life with CF

Lynn Doan

Tuesday, June 8, 2004 | 9:21 a.m.

If there was one thing that Tawny Bradfield wanted more than anything else as a kid, it was to have a "normal childhood."

So she joined the band, played on a soccer team, took dance lessons and performed theater, attempting to hide any trace of cystic fibrosis -- a disease she has suffered from since birth.

Then in fourth grade, Bradfield grew weary of disguising her chronic cough and the six pills she swallows with each meal. She gathered the courage to confide in her best friend, who replied, "I always knew there was something special about you."

"That was when I realized that I was special. I have this disease that not everybody else has, and I can still see the positive in life," said Bradfield, 21, who grew up in Panaca, a small Nevada town three hours north of Las Vegas.

The Southern Utah University student received national recognition for her positive attitude this month from Heroes of Hope Living with CF, a program designed to honor people with cystic fibrosis who give hope to others.

Isabel Stenzel Byrnes, the panel member of Heroes of Hope who presented the award to Bradfield at the University of Nevada School of Medicine CF Center in Las Vegas, said Bradfield stood out from the rest of the award nominees as the most active.

"Twice a day she must go through respiratory treatment and take oral medication, and yet she is still working part time, going to college and getting really good grades," Byrnes said.

Every morning and night Bradfield must inhale a vaporized solution and wear a therapy vest, which pounds her chest to loosen up mucus in her lungs. In one day she may consume six to 10 pills.

Earlier this year she also added IV treatments to the list because doctors found a "bad case of some bugs" in her lungs. During that time, she endured the 15-minute treatment before class, after class and in the evening.

"It was hard to balance my schooling and all of these IV treatments that I had to do," Bradfield said.

Despite this she managed to maintain a 4.0 GPA in the past three semesters. She is also involved in student government and works for the Hunter Conference Center, where she coordinates conferences for universities.

"I just try to live each day the best that I can, so that I'll know that even if I don't make it as far as somebody else, I've lived my life to the fullest," Bradfield said.

According to Byrnes, those who suffer from the chronic lung disease have an average life expectancy of 34.

With that in mind, Bradfield has set three life goals for herself: finish college, pursue a career in occupational therapy and become a wife and a mother.

"I know that for a lot of people with CF, these goals can seem impossible, but those are my goals, and I'm looking forward to them," Bradfield said. "Hopefully others will find hope in the way I live ..."