I’m a 44-year-old mom of three boys and a wife to an amazing husband and veteran. I love the outdoors, traveling and have a passion for fitness. I have always been health conscious and have 
participated in multiple fitness events as well as long distance races and/or obstacle courses. I work in corporate real estate and love what I do.
In the summer of 2016, I noticed irregularities in my stool daily. Although I didn’t act immediately, I started the process of meeting with doctors in the fall of 2016. Because of my age, it was thought to be irritable bowel syndrome. Wanting to rule it out, we followed up with a colonoscopy in late December. To my surprise, I was informed that I had a large tumor in my colon and needed to see an oncologist as well as a surgeon. The first week in January 2017 I was in surgery and starting the road to recovery. I was diagnosed with stage II colon cancer. Because of early detection, I was able to avoid radiation and chemotherapy.
On Tuesday January 30, 2018, I meet with my oncologist for my 1-year follow-up; hoping and praying to remain cancer free as I have been over the past nine months. There is no history of colon cancer in my family; my mother had cervical cancer, my dad had lung cancer, and my maternal grandmother had breast cancer.
Colon cancer has had a positive effect in my life. I was able to avoid chemo/radiation because of early detection. However, the awareness and desire to change my diet and exercise habits has been such a valuable piece in my healing. Stay positive and have a fighting mentality. I refused to be defeated by this disease and after the initial shock, I changed my attitude and knew I would overcome the obstacles.
