The last thing I was expecting at 32 years old was to be diagnosed with cancer. I had 2 young children, ages 6 and 1 at the time. I remember the fear and uncertainty that I experienced as I began the journey through months of medical issues, numerous doctors and countless tests. Initially I was diagnosed with spastic colon and irritable bowel syndrome, and given medicine to control the pain. It was only after my ovary ruptured, which led to a buildup of fluid in my abdom

On Nov 5, 2013 I woke up with excruciating pain high in my abdomen. With a little Ibuprofen, I successfully abated the pain and went to work. Unfortunately it returned mid-day, further down in my abdomen and on the left side. Again Ibuprofen put the pain off and I continued with work. That is, until the pain returned again in a way I have never experienced. It was low in my abdomen, and I could barely stand. I felt as though I would pass out at any moment. I do skincare, and

As a planner, cancer has definitely had an impact on how I plan my life. Cancer was never in the plan, but since it has become part of my story I now plan around it's inconvenience. Before cancer I always had my next vacation planned, which I worked around my job and of course my social calendar was always planned out several weeks ahead. However just because I have cancer doesn't mean I stopped living which is why I still have vacations planned, I still work when I feel w

I am currently 36 years old, and I was diagnosed with Ovarian Cancer at the age of 25. Although, I would turn 26 ,before I every had my first Chemo. This year I celebrated my 10 year cancerversary in July. It was a milestone for sure, wish I could have really treated myself, if my finances had allowed!!! I often wonder what my life would be like, if I had never been diagnosed, its nonsense really, as there is no going back. But I see people, family, friends, living what we w

Hello! My name is Janelle, a.k.a. The Sassy Survivor (at least I like to consider myself to be). The Sassy Survivor began as a mission to share my story to the world on how dealing with cancer really is. This story began with being diagnosed at the age of 27, with stage 2 ovarian cancer. Seeing me in such agony, my husband forced me to go see another doctor to figure out what the heck was going on with me. This visit, lead me to having a CT scan. Unfortunately, these result

My journey through Ovarian Cancer led me into a wonderfully uplifting business, thanks to my oldest niece, Zoey. Her mom was in college when she was born in 2006, and I got to shower Zoey, the first of her generation, with care, love and affection—I fell in love with being an Aunt! While living in beautiful Naples, Florida enjoying the beach lifestyle, a nurse practitioner saved my life by realizing I had a cancer symptom—a thickened lining of the uterus. When I was diagnos

I had stage 3c and it was the most common type, epithelial. I was 40 years young and though the prognosis didn’t look very well—I looked eight to nine months pregnant by time surgery came around. They removed eight liters of fluid while I underwent the total abdominal hysterectomy. Fortunately, I had an amazing gynecological oncologist who took very good care of me. I personally believe having a doctor who specializes in gynecological cancers is best suited for handling such

Three years ago I was still a newlywed, just becoming established in my career, and excited for what the future held. Little did I know that my recently promised vows would be put to the test and my job as a dietitian for oncology patients would become very personal, ironic right? I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer on January 17th 2014, when I was 28 years old. I didn’t have any symptoms like bloating, abdominal pain, or fatigue, and in fact almost cancelled the appointment

Our cancer story started on August 20, 2011, after being married just about a year and a half, I was 28, and my wife, Katie, was 25. I got a call from Katie, a nurse at a cardiologist office at the time, while I was at work that she was having pain in her abdomen and the doctor at her office thought it was appendicitis. I wasn’t alarmed. I had heard of appendicitis. It’s something that you go in, have a minor surgery to have it removed since nobody really knows what it do

I was diagnosed in 2009, at the tender age of 28, with stage 3 squamous cell carcinoma (cervical cancer). Being a young single mother with a 2 year old, it was by far the most surprising, devastating, and mind blowing experience I had experienced yet! With this news, my life took an 180 degree turn into walking in my purpose. After surgery to find out that the cancer had spread to my lymph nodes, several rounds of cisplatin - chemotherapy, internal and external radiation to