QA
“I got my mom through cancer and myself into college."
-COURTNEY BEAL
&
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@OFFIC T US! IA #court LJUSTBE neybea l
TWEE
Q What has been
the most difficult part of supporting yourself and your mom through this journey?
A
Digesting the fact that this illness will do everything in its power to tear my mom apart was very difficult for me. I constantly felt like the illness and I were in an ongoing battle, fighting over my mom, and I wasn’t going to let it win. She’s MY mom.
Q
A Thankful. I’meveryvery Ithankful. I’m trying tofriends, to the just live life fullest and enjoy day have with my family, and
most importantly, my mom.”
How would you describe your life in this exact moment?
Q How was your iniA
tial reaction when you first discovered that your mom had cancer? How did you find out?
I will never forget the day the doctor called our house to deliver the news. My mom answered the phone and he greeted her with “I have the results to your tests”. She immediately passed the phone to my dad because she knew what that meant, we all knew what that meant. Cancer seemed to be one of those malicious diseases that only affected people in movies or appeared on the news.
Q Howyour mom gone Q How didinto USF and Q How does it feel now much treatyou balance getting ment has A
making sure you were always there for your mom? that you’re mom is just about cancer free?
She was diagnosed in November of 2012 and that is when she immediately started her chemotherapy. She completed the chemo mid-March and instantly followed up with radiation. The radiation treatments lingered on until the month of May. On a more positive note, as of today, my mom has completed all of her treatments. The doctors will follow up with tests in a few months to ensure she is cancer free.
A
I won’t lie, it wasn’t easy and Senior year is tough enough alone; applying for colleges, completing community service hours, balancing a social life and good grades along with scoring well on tests such as the SAT. Nonetheless, having the support and love from close friends, family, my dad and especially my mom is truthfully the only reason I made it through. As cheesy as this may sound, they were my umbrella through the storm.
A
Relief would be an understatement. From the beginning, the cure rate of Lymphoma is relatively high. However, knowing that the person I love the most is almost out of misery is so enlightening. Knowing that she made it though one of the toughest battles known to man with only a few battle scars proves her strength and I couldn’t be any more proud of her accomplishment.