To me, cancer prevention, detection, and treatment have always been personal.
I was diagnosed with pre-cancerous melanoma in 2020, and because it was caught early, I was lucky. I had a Mohs micrographic surgery and twelve hours later, walked away without complications. But I know that story does not end that way for everyone, including some dear members of my family, and that early detection is often the difference between the two outcomes.
Skin and esophageal cancer run on both sides of my family, so I grew up knowing this disease was something I would have to take seriously. What I did not know was how much that experience would shape what I want to do with my time and energy. When I found the American Cancer Society GenNow Network, I found a place where my 'why' could grow.
Education and access to resources are the most powerful tools we have. There is no such thing as too much information when a piece of it could save someone's life. Awareness leads to early detection, and early detection saves lives. I, and my little finger nub, are proof of that.
I fundraise and serve as the Mission Director for the GenNow Network because helping people is not something I do on the side. It is what drives me. Every dollar raised is a step toward better research, better treatment, and a future where fewer people have to hear the words "you have cancer", and more people get to walk away the way I did.