Can you summarize Sally Jane's experience with cancer and how it has influenced her jewelry company? Answer according to: "I cried for my baby, for the life I wanted with my husband, and my fear of what it meant to die."
In Fall 2013, at seven-months pregnant, my husband and I were on a fun last minute babymoon to Niagara Falls. I remember sitting in the hotel room overlooking the massive waterfalls being mesmerized and frightened by the sheer power of the water. I started researching people who had ended up over the edge and survived, fascinated by what it must feel like to be thrown off and into something so deadly with such force and no control. I had no idea I was about to be thrown off the edge of my own happy life, and into something just as terrifying.
I had enjoyed a relatively uneventful pregnancy, except for occasional stomachaches. I had suffered the same stomachaches for the last few years, so only casually mentioned them to my OB. She ran blood work and the results were normal. But driving home from Canada the pain intensified and I knew this was not normal. Later that evening I was admitted to the hospital. Over the next 24 hours the doctors discovered what they thought was a cyst on my ovary. It was bumping against my uterus, and the pain was causing contractions and forcing my body into premature labor.
Sally Jane in Niagra Falls, just days before discovering a lump on her ovary that would turn out to be cancerous.
I needed surgery that involved anesthesia, drugs, laparoscopy, and precision, so as not to disrupt the uterus further and send me into labor. My surgeon came out of the operating room drenched in sweat. When I woke up I was thrilled to hear the surgery was a success, our baby was fine, and I was expected to finish my pregnancy normally.
One week later I got a call from the surgeon telling me that pathology on my “cyst” came back and it was actually a tumor. I was floored. I had no family history of cancer, and was 31 years old with the sense of invincibility every 31 year old has.
Over the next 48 hours my nightmare only worsened. I was initially advised it was likely stage I ovarian cancer, then the diagnosis changed to stage IV colon cancer that had spread to my ovary. The oncologist said my only option was chemotherapy and that someone with my advanced cancer had on average only two years to live.
The following day our mindset changed to one of research and action. We were fortunate to be referred to Dr. David Ryan, a leading expert in gastrointestinal cancers, who practiced at Massachusetts General Hospital, only 15 minutes from our home. After meeting with Dr. Ryan he told us there was a chance that I could be cured.
The treatment plan was aggressive and started with inducing labor (I delivered naturally). At eight months, Samuel arrived, healthy, happy, and absolutely perfect. I promised myself that he and I would enjoy our special time and he would always have a mom who was present and able to celebrate every milestone he achieves. That resolve gave me strength then, and continues to give me strength now.
My treatment was physically and mentally brutal. My doctor gave me a week at home with my baby before starting, but I was still not fully recovered from the birth. All told, I had 11 rounds of chemotherapy, two liver resections (the cancer spread there, too), and an extremely intense and difficult HIPEC surgery, in which doctors delivered a highly concentrated, heated form of chemo directly into my abdomen.
Sally Jane with her husband, Steve, and Samuel in June 2104, two months after the HIPEC surgery.
I have recently had a small set back with metastasis in my abdominal muscle but my doctors believe I should make a full recovery with further treatment. I currently have one more surgery and radiation planned. After two years there has been no other sign of cancer, which is incredibly positive.
Looking back, symptoms such as the stomachaches and once seeing blood in my stool were red flags that I should have raised to my doctor. Screening for colon cancer does not even begin until we are 50-plus and because of that, the disease is decreasing among older people yet rising in people in their twenties, thirties, and forties. Overlooking symptoms that may be confused as IBS or other digestive problems often leads to late diagnosis and poor prognosis.
Today I am living my dream of owning a jewelry company, Sally Jane, which I had started before I was pregnant. Our pieces originally featured a bee as our symbol to remind the wearer to live in the present and “Just Bee!” As I recovered I realized that the company and its message was evolving into so much more—it’s also about being bold, being courageous and being a survivor. Bees are being threatened by disease—and sometimes so are we. Bees are not the most aerodynamically designed creatures, but by flapping their wings fast enough, they carry the weight of their bodies through the air. It’s a symbol of the strength we all have within to overcome any of life’s struggles. I have been amazed at the courageous stories our customers and friends have shared with us.
The company is also an avenue to give back. With every purchase we give $1 to patient care programs and research in immunotherapy at Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, a leader in personalized medicine, early-detection technologies and innovative supportive care.
Starting Sally Jane has connected me with a community of people who have overcome all different types of struggles and I feel inspired by them every day. Although this is the most difficult experience of my life, I know I am a better person and a better mom for having gone through it. I may have been thrown off the edge of the waterfall, but I am most certainly surviving.
This prompt doesn't seem malicious.