CHEHALIS – Matt Patana knows the thrill of victory – he still is Ilwaco High’s only state wrestling champion – and he also knows the agony of defeat when, at age 24, he was tentatively diagnosed with megullary carcinoma, an extremely rare and deadly form of thyroid cancer.

The doctor was incorrect in his original diagnosis of the form of the disease and the cancer had to deal with Patana’s fighting spirit and the faith and prayers of his wife, Channel and of his family and his church in Winlock. The cancer didn’t stand a chance.

A couple of weeks ago Patana and 51 teams participated in a Relay for Life event in Lewis County that raised $164,000 to help fund cancer research. Matt, the son of Pat and Debbie Patana of Chinook is making plans to participate in a similar event at Pederson Field in Ilwaco June 23 and 24.

Patana spent his early years in Toledo and moved to Chinook at age 12 where he quickly became a standout wrestler. “I played basketball, football, baseball, and soccer, but my first love was wrestling since I began in the seventh grade,” Matt says. Competing for Coach Kevin McNulty at Ilwaco High School he qualified for state his sophomore year, placed sixth his junior year, and was state champion at 135 lbs. in 1998, the same year he graduated.

Patana attended the University of Pacific in Oregon and wrestled at the varsity level for two seasons before being told to stop because of a series of concussions. “I was never scared in sports,” Patana says. “I always had the confidence that I was going to win, that I was the best. Looking back I think that may have been a false sense of security.” He says that even when being thrown twice by a Canadian Olympian in a college match he never felt fear.

Patana married in 2002 and became a journeyman electrician in the Chehalis area. He and Channel had their daughter Elizabeth a couple of years later. Life seemed to be on an even keel. Patana had begun to coach wrestling at Adna in 2001 and when that program lost funding he was quickly hired the next season as assistant for the Toledo-Winlock squad that competed against Ilwaco at the 1A level.

After returning from the Mat Classic in 2005, wrestling’s exciting and colorful version of state competition, Patana was shaving that eventful evening in February when he noticed “one of the sides of my neck was different.” He told his wife, a dental hygienist, and that night they went to the emergency room.

“I figured it was nothing,” Matt says. “I’d been to the dentist that day and just figured it was some infection or something that would go away. Cancer never crossed my mind.” After blood work, a trip to a specialist, and a CAT scan the growth did not go away. In fact it had spread from his neck to Patana’s upper-chest area and the doctor was concerned that it could close off his airway and inhibit his ability to swallow.

Channel says, “The doctor kept saying the huge thing on his neck was probably a cyst.” A needle and some painful probing led the physician to refer young Patana for a biopsy. “We were told the rare forms of cancer could kill and the more common ones could be treated,” Channel says. Matt kept thinking it was nothing and continued to work as an electrician.

“I was driving in the company’s truck when I got a call from the doctor on my cell phone. I pulled off I-5 and he told me he thought it was the rare kind of cancer, the kind that was deadly,” Matt says softly. “It took the wind out of me. I was numb.”

He called Channel and she too was shocked. That Thursday evening was Elizabeth’s first birthday party. “We knew this could be very serious,” Channel says. “I was not ready for any of this,” Matt adds. “I suddenly realized how very mortal I was after hearing the word cancer.”

The young couple called the doctor back and they were told to wait until Monday when he would consult with them. The next day Channel pleaded to meet with physicians at the University of Washington to get another opinion. In March a team of eight physicians concluded that the cancer was indeed a more benign but extremely serious form of follicular thyroid carcinoma. The first surgery was March 28 and Patana had half his thyroid removed, while a second operation was performed May 5 to take out the rest of his thyroid.

“It felt great to have someone who knew what he was doing,” Matt says. “Doc Byrd did the surgeries. He’s about seven feet tall and it’s amazing he could perform surgery with his huge hands,” Channel praises. After Patana’s thyroid was removed radioactive iodine was used to eradicate the remainder of the cancerous cells in the area.

About that time in May the couple learned that Channel was pregnant with Christian, who is now nearly four months old.

During the radioactive iodine treatment Patana was isolated for almost two days in the “lead room” and then kept away from the pregnant Channel and two-year old Elizabeth for a couple of weeks. “I was like a walking X-ray machine. I was so radioactive I was dangerous to others,” Matt explains. The surgeries and radiation treatment did the job and Matt received a clear bill of health in March 2006. Living without a thyroid has had its difficulties, however.

“I lived on elk meet and ice water at first. We have discovered some recipes to basically make nothing taste like something,” Matt jokes. “I eventually was put on medication and since the thyroid regulates metabolism, it’s important the medication is working.” He has returned to being an electrician and coached wrestling last season. He and his family celebrated Father’s Day in Chinook last weekend with the only problem being when one of the young cousins tumbled into the Patana’s shallow frog pond.

“We’re hoping for a full recovery,” Channel says. “We have a great and supportive family, a great church in Winlock, and a great God.”

Matt received a purple T-shirt from Relay for Life last month. Only cancer survivors get those. He earned a medal for being a top wrestler in the state in 1998. Only champions get those. Matt Patana is both.