-
In the Loop: One man’s mission to spread cancer awareness coast to coast
Share this:
Last December, Pat Shannon announced to his wife and to his Mayo oncologist that he was going to take a 10,000-mile journey on his motorcycle, despite still battling a rare cancer he's had since 2007.
Pat Shannon could have given up after the first recurrence. Or the second. Or after every new test that showed the adenoid cystic carcinoma was spreading. He'd known that this might be his new normal since 2007, when Mayo Clinic otolaryngologist Kerry Olsen, M.D., diagnosed him with the disease.
Pat's 12-year battle has included four major surgeries and 40 rounds of radiation meant to slow a cancer for which there's no known cure. But, he's never given up. In fact, he's done the opposite, by making his cancer diagnosis about living rather than dying. "I have a sign on the back of my motorcycle that says, 'I'll probably die from cancer, but it ain't going to kill me,'" Pat tells us.
________________________________________________
This story originally appeared on the In the Loop blog.
Share this:
Related articles
Shortly before Thanksgiving 2021, Jerry Haines, a part-time farmer and retired butter and cheesemaker, was helping another farmer with fall chores. He felt good but ...
May is Bladder Cancer Awareness Month, which makes this a good time to learn about the risk factors for bladder cancer and what you can do ...
May is Brain Cancer Awareness Month, which makes this a good time to learn about metastatic brain cancer. Overall, the chance that a person will develop ...