Survivors Voices

I received the first of far too many phone calls that started with “are you someplace you can talk?” when I was 28. And, to be perfectly honest, I have grown to hate phone calls that start out like that. The nurse practitioner who had done my Pap a couple of weeks earlier was calling with my results. Abnormal. At first I was thinking – Okay, this isn’t so bad. All of my friends have abnormal Paps all the time and it’s no big deal, right? Well, as the conversation continued my heart sunk as I was told that I had HPV. I’m not one of those girls.

Life was going so well and about to get better, so I thought. In August of 2008, after working with the NYC Police Department for more than 20 years as a Police Officer I was retiring and joining my already retired husband. We had so many plans, we were going to travel, stop to smell the roses and just plain enjoy life. Not too many people are able to retire in their early 40's. We had worked hard and our time was here to enjoy. After enjoying retirement life for like a minute or two, we get hit with a shocking news and our world as we knew it STOPPED. This was not happening.

How does a young person describe their journey of fighting cancer? This is not supposed to happen to someone our age! Age is on our side- we are immune! Well, I hate to break the news, but this isn’t the case. I unfortunately had to learn the hard way.

I was just 26 years old and the mother of two small children, 2 and 4 years old, when I received the news on September 29, 2008. While the news was horrific, it could have been worse. My cancer was not yet invasive and could be resolved with a hysterectomy which was viewed as a major surgery especially at such a young age. I had had 2 abnormal paps, a bad biopsy and the final results came from a LEEP procedure I had in August of 2009.

This is me.... My name is Jennifer (Jenni). Up until I was 23, I was like every other 23 year old. My main concerns were college, friends, having a good time and of course partying. Then in March of 2003 everything changed. I went in for my yearly pap and came out with cancer. I felt fine and had nothing that would tell me something was wrong with me, except sporadic periods, but I guess my body had other plans in mind. What I found out was: at age 23 I had stage IIA cervical cancer. My first thought was “WOW, I have cancer”.

My name is Pamela and I would consider myself a fortunate individual that has had several successes in life and many memories of fun times throughout the years. I have had my share of sorrows too, but none that affected me for too long. I was always able to be resilient…able to bounce back. That was until I was faced with my own personal battle with the big “C’” aka cancer. Today, I am a cervical cancer survivor trying to keep cancer at bay and live life to the fullest, because you just never know what tomorrow might bring.

My name is Alissa, and I am proud to be a 32-year-old cervical cancer survivor.

My journey with cancer began about four years ago when I had an abnormal pap smear and colposcopy that showed pre-cancerous lesions. At the time, I was in my late 20s, and I was married and hoping to start a family. All I could think was whether this pre-cancer would rob me of my chance to have children. At the time my doctor,

My heartfelt story of cervical cancer Post manipulation of my scar by my healer/acupuncturist, six and a half years after surgery. I experienced an incredible release of emotions. What did I feel?

I am a mother and a poet, and in 1999, I was diagnosed with stage II cervical cancer. The news was devastating.

My treatment included 28 days of intense radiation and a procedure where doctors placed a cancer fighting implant inside my cervix. This procedure was done twice, and each time, I had to lie on my back for three days without moving.

It seemed as if life was moving along just as it should be, and then one day, it all changed. I am 33 years old, have a terrific husband, 2 beautiful children and nieces and nephews that light up my world, except now, I had cervical cancer. I am healthy, fit, had two easy pregnancies and never a gynecological issue. How could this be?

The year was 1987, and I was 15. I’d decided to live with my grandmother in SC while my mother relocated to Virginia. My mother mandated that if I was to remain in SC with my grandmother, I would start taking the pill. This was her way of keeping me out of the teenage pregnancy stats. After a year of taking the Pill, I decided to stop because I wasn’t having sex. My grandmother agreed, but insisted that I still visit the gynecologist for an annual pap smear since I was becoming a young woman.

I am a Stage 3B Cervical Cancer Survivor. I created a blog in an effort to raise Cervical Cancer Awareness (www.cancerlost.blogspot.com). I was 28 when I was diagnosed with advanced Cervical Cancer and my story is a long, painful & inspiring one. Cervical Cancer is not talked about but it touches the lives of every single woman out there. We need to start talking about this cancer because it is not rare and it does kill.

I'm not sure why I never knew or heard of HPV growing up and I'm not sure if it never happened to me if I'd care as much as I do now. I was in my early 20's when I learned I had HPV and that I would need to undergo a partial hysterectomy. The Doctor treating me acted like the virus was common and my life would go unchanged, but all I knew was that I was dying.