Inspirational Stories

In September 2014, just shy of four months after college graduation, I was blindsided sitting in the emergency room at Duke Hospital.

A little background . . . for the past year, I had moderate to severe pain in my left shoulder. I blamed it on an injury, even thought it was just bursitis. I've had three cortisone injections; no one ever thought it was anything more. At my last injection, I was told no more injections without further examination. We got in touch with the best shoulder specialist, had some regular X-rays, and started physical therapy. On Wednesday, September 10, I had my second PT appointment and received a deep tissue massage. As I was driving home, I looked over my right shoulder for oncoming traffic and felt a pop in my neck on the right side. It immediately swelled and when my mom saw it, we headed for the hospital. I am so blessed to live about 10 miles from Duke University Medical Center.

The doctor ordered a plain chest x-ray in case I had to go to surgery and a neck CT. While I was getting my neck scanned, the doctor told my mom that on the chest X-ray, they found what appeared to be a mass on my chest and added a chest CT as well. When they came back in with the results, there was that word . . . CANCER. I was admitted to the oncology floor shortly after that (around 11:30 p.m.). On Thursday, I finally heard the word “lymphoma.”

After I settled into a room, my dad came into the room with a giant bag of Hershey Kisses and told me that if I ever felt sad or alone to eat a Hershey Kiss and know he loved me and would always be with me. He also looked at me and promised me that one year from then we would find an organization that represented my cancer, and we would walk in honor of my fight, and that I would win. We found The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS), and they have been absolutely amazing. I have built so many friendships with people within the organization. They sent me cards, called, and always checked on me. When I go to the walk each year, they know me by name and always welcome me with open arms. I am thankful for LLS and the love and support that they consistently show me.