Cancer has been a part of my life for many many years, I am sorry to say. I began working with the Blooming Prairie Cancer Group about 15 years ago. We raise funds for the Eagles Cancer Telethon in the fight against cancer, and we also have a Community fund that helps people in our area that are dealing with cancer and its treatments. We give out parking passes, gas cards, help with utilities, groceries, anything that can help ease their struggles if only a bit.
Cancer 1st struck my Dad at the age of 67. He lived for less than a month after diagnosis. Luekemia and Lymphoma ran rampant thru his body. Around that same time a close high school friend died of liver cancer at the age of 43. This stirred up a passion in me to help in the fight against cancer. I had seen first hand what cancer does to the body, and wanted to be a part of the fight.
Then about 3 years later my Mom was diagnosed with Multiple Mylemoma ( a non curable type of cancer). Life expectancy at that time was 3-5 years. With chemo and radiation she lived for 9 years, passing away in the fall of 2008. Again this passion in me was stirred….and I got more involved in the cancer group.
Then it was MY TURN, December 2009 I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I underwent a double mastectomy, followed by 4 rounds of chemotherapy. Dec 2019 will be 10 years for me, I still am doing the chemo therapy, tamoxificin, letrozole. My Oncology doctor says after a couple test in April 2020, I hopefully will be done with all the treatment…Needless to say, I have a lot of reasons to keep up the fight for a cure for cancer, hopefully in my lifetime there will be a cure. The fight will continue here in Blooming Prairie!!!