Advocating for Myself
Reading Time: 2 minutes As a stage 3A melanoma skin cancer survivor, I’ve learned valuable lessons about self-advocacy during my journey. Looking back, there are two critical points that underscore the importance of advocating
Tag: Empowerment
It was Never the End
Reading Time: 2 minutes I always thought I wouldn’t make it to 18, wouldn’t make it to see myself graduate, never go to college or have a family of my own. An enemy was
Now I Know My IBC
Reading Time: 6 minutes Trigger warning: Suicidal Ideation “I’m sorry but this looks like stage III, Inflammatory Breast Cancer (IBC).” Those were the words that sprung out of my doctor’s lips that ordinary November
A Board Member’s Story of CancerCon 2023
Reading Time: 7 minutes I kissed the wife and kids goodbye and headed to the airport. Next stop, CancerCon 2023. I got into the Omni Atlanta at about 11pm, checked in, thanked the staff
My Journey: Battling Cancer and Raising Awareness
Reading Time: 3 minutes I am Amy Nichole, a passionate photographer with a specialization in pet portraits and landscape photography. My career takes me on a journey to capture the beauty of the world,
Am I Struggling Enough?
Reading Time: 2 minutes I’m scared to share, because I don’t struggle enough…but maybe there are others who feel like an imposter as well. Back in 2019, I was finishing up college, waiting tables,
Empathy to Expertise: My AYA Journey from Patient to Researcher
Reading Time: 4 minutes In August 2017, my life took an unexpected turn when I was diagnosed with breast cancer during my final year of undergraduate studies. At the beginning of the summer, I
When I Finally Felt Free
Reading Time: 3 minutes I can remember the chill that ran down my spine. The tingle of antiseptic in my nose, and the throbbing burn running down my leg from surgical wounds. They had
Humor, Friendship and Young Adults with Advanced Cancer
Reading Time: 3 minutes My name is Megan Solberg, and I am a sixth-year doctoral candidate in the counseling psychology PhD program at the University of Denver. I currently live in Kansas City, Kansas
The Chapter is Only Part of the Story
Reading Time: 2 minutes If someone used a book as a metaphor to describe living with cancer and cancer survivorship, I think many adolescents and young adults (AYAs) would suspect the book is full