In February of last year, I was diagnosed with a rare type of cancer called MPNST, which is a type of sarcoma cancer. After a year of fighting and my recent clear scans, I am happy to say that I am officially 9 months cancer free and counting!
Last year after I got out of the hospital, I stumbled upon the Pittsburgh Cure Sarcoma walk and knew it was something I wanted to participate in no matter what it took. Given that I couldn’t walk at the time, I was lucky enough to have my twin brother Brendan volunteer to push me in a wheelchair during the 5k. When I first signed up, my fundraising goal was $300. Days later, I raised upwards of $17,000. That day I made two personal goals for myself: to not only raise more awareness and money for next year’s PCS walk, but to be able to run it myself. For the past 9 months, I have gone to physical therapy three times a week and made it my mission to get back to running. I’m even planning on participating in the Pittsburgh Half Marathon this upcoming May. I am forever grateful for all of my physical therapists who have been a part of my progress and helped me get in the shape I’m in. As far as fundraising goes, The 2025 Pittsburgh Cure Sarcoma (PCS) run/walk registration is finally open and I would love it if you would come out and join my team! With enough time to plan this time around, we are excited to go bigger than last year and hope you can join us in raising money for sarcoma cancer research.
For those who don’t know, sarcoma is a very rare type of cancer that targets bones and connective tissues. My desire to continue volunteering and raising money for this cause began after last year’s race when I realized just how lucky I was given my circumstances. Since then, I’ve had the incredible opportunity to volunteer and participate in other events throughout the year. Just recently I was able to tour the Lab at AHN with Dr. Lisa Ercolano and Dr. William LaFramboise to see the strides they are making to fight sarcoma cancer. Being able to see where the funds are going makes me want to work even harder to raise money and find a cure for this awful disease.
To say the past year has been challenging would be an understatement. If you asked me last February where I would be today, my answer would probably be completely different than my reality. I am lucky enough to be surrounded by an incredible team of doctors, nurses, friends, family, and prayers that have all played a huge part in getting me through this and they are the reason I am where I’m at today. I have the best support system in the world, and for that I am forever grateful.
