Karen Wiest is currently at Geisinger battling rare cancer.
SUNBURY – There has been an outpouring of community support for Karen Wiest, the former Line Mountain High School principal who has a rare type of cancer. Her son Joel Wiest posted a social media message last week and it has garnered nearly 400 comments. Joel told WKOK Monday, he wanted to thank everyone for the support, prayers and remarks he’s received from friends, the community and family.
Karen, who is 71, and lives in the Sunbury area, is hospitalized at Geisinger, and Joel says she is undergoing a clinical immunotherapy study with the University of Pennsylvania. The family is also facing the holidays without a patriarch, Karen’s husband, Judge William Harvey Wiest died suddenly after a fall last May.
He says she has a rare endometrial cancer and has been very weak, and is quite ill. After a brief phone conversation about her condition Monday, Joel told us, “Be sure to include, my thanks for everyone, for their ongoing support. It means a lot to us.”
Karen is very active in the civic and her church community, is a retired educator, and was an adjunct faculty member at Susquehanna University. WKOK will keep you posted about her progress through the clinical trial.
