TL,DR: After a weird 2020, I’m once again running the Boston Marathon in 2024 as part of the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge. I appreciate your support!
TL: Cancer! What is there to say? It’s still around and it’s still awful.
Background for those who don’t know: In February 2015, I was diagnosed with cancer after a routine doctor’s appointment. After a successful surgery, I thought I was in the clear. However, the cancer had other plans and would make its triumphant return that summer. It was off to chemo.
No way around it: chemo is awful. And the whole process wasn't without its complications. A pulmonary embolism (or two, maybe?) and some lung scarring sidelined me even further. Things could be rough. And honestly, it’s been hard, harder than I imagined. Eight years later, I’m still dealing with the mental and physical effects—and still learning more now. HOWEVER: I’m incredibly fortunate to have Dana-Farber in my corner. From the doctors, to the nurses, to the entire staff, I was always treated with the utmost care and respect. Even though I’m now cancer free, they still are there for me. Just a few weeks ago, I met with their Adult Survivorship Program, which was a great help in managing my current health. With cancer rates in young adults on the rise, it’s more important than ever to have resources like these.
Even though 2020 didn’t obviously turn out the way anyone wanted, I was still proud to be part of this team and the amazing work we did. Now I feel the time is right to finish what we started. I want to be living proof that we can do this. It will be a lot of work, but I appreciate all your support. Let’s do the thing.
