by Shannon Mayerl | Feb 10, 2021 | Survivor of the Week
May 7, 2017 I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. I couldn’t think about what the doctor said. I had a Bilateral Mastectomy July 12th, 2017 and took 9 treatments of Taxol and Herceptin infusion for 18 months. I had a horrible plastic surgeon, I have been through...
by Shannon Mayerl | Jan 27, 2021 | Survivor of the Week
First of all I don’t consider myself a “survivor”, I am a cancer warrior. At age 72, I was diagnosed late 2017 with a 2.5 centimeter lesion near the base of my esophagus. My newfound Oncologist decided on a course of concurrent weekly radiation and...
by Shannon Mayerl | Jan 20, 2021 | Survivor of the Week
I am on chemo.
by Shannon Mayerl | Jan 5, 2021 | Survivor of the Week
A typical dentist appointment for a cavity turned into a complete life changing situation. My dentist wasn’t concerened about the rotting tooth (I ignored for way to long) but he was very concerned about the lesion under my tongue. He sent me to an oral surgeon...
by Shannon Mayerl | Dec 22, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
On 8/8/2019 my world turned upside down. Diagnosis, Lobular Carcinoma of the left breast, breast cancer. After 4 months Chemotherapy, a masectomy including lymph nodes and 29 radiation treatments and Xeloda chemotherapy by mouth I am Cancer Free. A Fresh Start and a...
by Shannon Mayerl | Dec 8, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
This is my grandma, Martha. This is a story of her journey with Uterine Leiomyosarcoma; and is in very loving memory of her. She was diagnosed with Uterine Sarcoma in September of 2018 and went to Heaven April 28th of 2019. She faced many challenges during this time....
by Shannon Mayerl | Nov 24, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
It was the middle of March 2020 and I was having stomach pains and felt a hernia growing. The pains increased causing me to have very bad pains. I went to the ER and had to be alone while my brother waited outside in his car. COVID-19 has just got bad so no visitors....
by Shannon Mayerl | Nov 17, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
At the start of my junior year in high school, I faced an obstacle that changed my life forever. I was diagnosed with Stage IV CIC-DUX4, “Ewing’s Like” Sarcoma. I had a 12cm tumor in my calf and nodules in my lungs. My world came down on me. I...
by Shannon Mayerl | Nov 11, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
I am a resident of Dehradun in India, a Geophysicist by profession, I have worked in several Oil & Gas Exploration projects in Asia and Southern Africa. I was posted for an oil and gas exploration project in difficult terrain conditions of Assam (India) in July...
by Shannon Mayerl | Oct 27, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
I pulled a muscle playing soccer and brushed it off. The next day I was limping so bad I had to find an orthopedic doctor. They did an X-ray and found a mass on the outside of my femur and referred me to a surgeon, it ended up being cancer. This all started in 2016. I...
by Shannon Mayerl | Oct 14, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
In 2014 I was diagnosed with Thyroid cancer. Had a complete removal. Then in 2016 I went in for a dnc and the doctor found cancer in my uterus and it started to spread. Had a complete hysterectomy and found out it was stage 3 endometrial cancer. Tried chemo and was...
by Shannon Mayerl | Oct 6, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
June 2010 I was diagnosed with GBM Brain Cancer. Local doctors gave me 6 months at most to live. My family would not accept that! They got me to MD Anderson in Orlando, Florida. The specialist there immediately looked at my scans and said it was not GBM that It was...
by Shannon Mayerl | Sep 23, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
I was diagnosed with stage 4 left lung cancer going on 3 years, I’m going strong just had my 43rd treatment and very blessed!
by Shannon Mayerl | Sep 15, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
On November 8, 2017 I was diagnosed with breast cancer stage 2 grade 3. After finding out it was genetic braca 2 we found it had spread to my lymph nodes and I had 17 lymph nodes removed. In January 2018 I started chemo and in August 2018 I did radiation. In April...
by Shannon Mayerl | Sep 8, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
November 2018, while in the shower, I found a lump in my right breast. I went for a mammogram and they did an ultrasound and said it was a cyst. They sent me home said women later in life get these and they go away. I was relieved and didn’t really think about...
by Shannon Mayerl | Sep 1, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
My story began when I was 15. I went to the doctor with a fever and they found my blood pressure was three digits over three digits. After rechecking several times, it was obvious something was wrong. I ended up at Vanderbilt. I had tumors in and around my adrenal...
by Shannon Mayerl | Aug 25, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
As with all cancers my diagnosis was unexpected, sudden and without warning. I was healthy, at least I thought I was, and living a full and happy life. No symptoms at all until one night I had a massive bleed when passing water. I didn’t panic or even expect the worst...
by Shannon Mayerl | Aug 18, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
About 6 months after I had my son I had appendicitis. It was treated with antibiotics and I was told I had a 75% chance of never getting sick again. I was part of that 25% that got sick again and found myself in and out of the hospital the next 10 months. Finally, I...
by Shannon Mayerl | Aug 11, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
In July of 2017 on a long (8hr) flight home from North Africa (where we spend a lot of our summers), I began to experience a different and painful cramp, almost like a contraction. I began bleeding heavily and felt ill. I felt bewildered because I had my mensural...
by Shannon Mayerl | Aug 4, 2020 | Survivor of the Week
I was diagnosed with stage 4 left lung cancer. At one point my oxygen level was 60, I was rushed to the hospital where they put in a drain and put me on oxygen. 2 months later the drain removed and off oxygen, I was able to mow my grass, do laundry, grocery shop...
