Today I am pleased to share with you a video of my cervical cancer story. Through a series of people I was connected with Roche. Roche was looking for a cervical cancer patient or survivor to come and tell her story. This story is going to be used to help advocate for women's wellness and the use of the HPV test which can identify if a woman is carrying the strands of HPV which are known to cause cervical cancer: 16 and 18. This test will be an integral piece in woman's health! You may have forgotten, although I'd had several abnormal paps leading to my diagnosis the pap I had when the cancer was found was actually a normal pap. Let that sink in for a minute, I had CANCER on my cervix and the pap came back normal. This test could have caught the HPV and told me I had those high risk strands. If we knew sooner which strands I had, my doctor could have taken the time to educate me on what to look for. I could have taken the time to education myself about what to look for. Education and knowledge are power!
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Donna Walls
9/28/2015 03:43:52 pm
Erica, it's so sweet of you to share your touching, albeit tragic story. Hopefully it'll help empower and encourage others to learn more about their bodies, the HPV test and ask questions when something doesn't seem right. We're thinking about you often and praying nightly for your full recovery. Stay strong and continue to fight! Sending big, tight hugs your way. 💖 Donna
Heather
10/5/2015 07:33:54 am
I am so glad I watched this! I have been battling HPV-related abnormalities for 8+ years, including 3 surgeries to remove pre-cancerous cells. I definitely plan to ask more questions and look more into it than I have in the past. Thank you so much for your bravery to share your story, along with the information and insight to help others. Leave a Reply. |
AuthorErica is a 32 year old cervical cancer advocate who is out living cancer for the third time. When she isn’t advocating for cervical cancer and HPV awareness as a Cervivor Ambassador, she previously oversaw the STEM program at the school where she was an educator; she now helps coordinate the robotics program. Erica enjoys spending time with her husband and son in their Indianapolis neighborhood, as well as pursuing new and adventurous hobbies. She can most recently be found fawning over kayaks and daydreaming of returning to whitewater kayaking with First Descents, an organization for young adults impacted by cancer. 
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