Hello everyone!! I just joined this group and wanted to share my story. I was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in December of 1997 when I was 11 years old. I had been having pain in my left leg, just below the knee, for about a month and a half before we went to the doctor. From that moment on, it was a 4 day whirlwind of tests, a biopsy, and a central line insertion before starting chemo. When it came time to choose my surgery, my parents let me make the decision for myself. Not an easy decision to pass over to an 11 year old but they trusted that I could figure out what I wanted and what would give me the life that I had planned to lead. I chose to have a rotationplasty because I knew that it would give me the greatest chance to get back to my very athletic childhood. My mom was understandably hesitant about the surgery and thinking as a grown woman, she was worried about how a dating girl brings up the fact that her foot is on backwards on a date :) I think that my confidence in the choice helped ease her worries and I had my operation on March 31 1998 at University of Nebraska med center in Omaha Nebraska. The surgery went great and after many usual setbacks with chemo (fevers, shingles, pneumonia) I finally finished chemo and got my first prosthetic all on the same day. October 20, 98 is my cancer free date and I definitely celebrate it every year! I played volleyball in high school, was on the varsity diving team, and dabbled in track and field. I turned down a college offer to be a part of the US Paralympic sitting volleyball team. I have been on that team since 2003 and have been to 3 Paralympic games in Athens (bronze medal), Beijing (silver) and London (silver). I have been married now for almost 4 years and have 2 beautiful kids. I am a very lucky person! The cancer was definitely a rough patch (more so for my parents than for me though) but it has opened up so many amazing opportunities for me. My heart goes out the other members of this group who are in their battle now. Stay strong!
Posted on: Mon, 21 Jul 2014 18:55:22 +0000
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