Cancer diagnosis to canvas: Doctor plans to paint the victories of his patients

    FORT MYERS, Florida (WBBH) -- Frank Rodriguez is happiest outside his comfort zone, which began as staring at a blank canvas.

"I can't imagine painting now for the rest of my life unless I keep changing the style and the technique. Change. Change is key, I think," Rodriguez said. "I feel a little more alive and a little more connected to reality."

Even the most daunting parts of Rodriguez's reality inspire his art.

"Every person who comes in with a diagnosis of cancer is afraid," Rodriguez said. "Fear is a pervasive feeling in the office."

As an oncologist for more than fifteen years, Rodriguez sees people at their most vulnerable.

"I get goosebumps thinking about it," Rodriguez said. "That's where you connect with people and really make a difference in their lives. In our practice we have a bell that oncology patients will ring at different points in their treatment. It's always a big win for them to ring that. I mean, there's been times when the whole office rings because somebody's ringing the heck out of that bell. That's a fight in people I love."

Rodriguez plans to take that fight and illustrate victory.

"I'm working on a project to paint that bell," Rodriguez said. "I'll make copies and make them available for patients. After they ring the bell they can take a copy of that picture and maybe have it signed by the nurses. They can take it as a medal. I like the idea of a medal for finishing that part of their treatment."

Whether transforming a blank canvas or transforming another human being's health, Rodriguez believes one thing.

"It's in that little space between the fear and the resilience that awesome things happen," Rodriguez said. "I really think that's where cure exists."