Inspirational Stories

My son, Coy, was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) on May 5, 2023. He was a junior at the United States Coast Guard Academy (USCGA) and had just won national runner-up in the NCAA Division III national wrestling tournament in March. He was a 4.0 student and had just been selected as Regimental Commander for the fall of his senior year. He returned home to secure and begin treatment. It was a challenge getting him into treatment, however, with great persistence, he was able to secure treatment with Dr. Allison Rosenthal at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, Arizona. She, too, is a blood cancer survivor, thus she understood the unique challenges of being a young adult cancer patient. She was quick to set up care and treatment for Coy.

Coy has not once asked for anyone to feel sorry for him nor has he made any sort of excuses. His goal from the start was to return to the USCGA for the start of the fall semester. Coy began treatment during the third week of May. He was prescribed six cycles, or 12 treatments, of chemotherapy. The day after his first round of chemotherapy, Coy ran eight miles. The week after that, he ran a full marathon (26 miles) and then rowed an additional 26 miles. Why? Because he wanted to prove to himself that cancer was not going to control his life.

On August 8, 2023, Coy returned to Connecticut to prepare for his fall semester as a 1/C, or senior at the USCGA. Coy, as well as Dr. Rosenthal, advocated for Coy to return with full duties and responsibilities. Coy is currently serving as the Regimental Commander of the Corp of Cadets, he is taking 17 college credits, serving as a wrestling captain, and is continuing his treatment at Yale Medical Center.

Coy is the picture of a young adult NOT letting cancer stop him. Young adults and their unique circumstances and needs remain a very under-recognized and, yet, critical piece of the cancer world. Coy was so fortunate to find Dr. Rosenthal who understood the unique circumstances of a young adult patient. This group tends to fall through the cracks. The pediatric world tends to dominate the limelight while young adults are overlooked as well as their families as they try to assist with navigating the care.