CancerCon 2019 ~ Reflections
It’s been two months since CancerCon 2019 and we are still riding high from all the excitement and connections the community made.
The CancerCon photo album also was published, so be sure to reminisce and update your profile pix with your favorite photos (ps — don’t forget to tag us too).
For our CancerCon 2019 Reflections post we thought we would interview two attendees so you can hear all they had to say about this year’s conference.
Christina Kosyla:
Meet Christina Kosyla from Bordentown, NJ. She teaches Drama and Theology at an all-girls school in Princeton, NJ. Christina is currently a patient. She was diagnosed with desmoid-type fibromatosis, a rare, intermediate-grade soft tissue sarcoma. She discovered Stupid Cancer and CancerCon on Instagram and said while this was her first CancerCon, this certainly will not be her last.
During our interview Christina shared: “The best part of the weekend was to be in a room where cancer was normal and not an experience you’re constantly needing to explain. Your weird side effects were a shared experience, and your complaints about health insurance, stupid questions, or pithy platitudes were met with a resounding “Ugh! Yes! I know!” CancerCon attendees are people who will cut to the chase and really want to know your story and ask how they can support you. It’s the worst club (none of us wanted to end up as a part of the cancer community) but we have the best members!”
She also shares “I’m super grateful for this community. My life is so much the better for it.”
And Christina, we are too!
Starr Coleman:
Meet Starr Coleman from Sterling, IL who is also a patient, diagnosed with Invasive Mammary Carcinoma. She is going into the Public Health field and wants to assist with patient advocacy and new legislation for cancer patients and survivors. Starr learned about CancerCon on Facebook and was one of our scholarship attendees.
During our interview Starr shared: “My experience at CancerCon was incredible. I had never been to an event where I felt so close to so many people that I did not know. Knowing that we all had one thing in common brought us closer. I learned that although we did have one thing in common, we all had very different journey’s. I never realized that my small town hospital actually provided some great support compared to what others have received at major facilities. Watching Toby Peach’s speech was one of the highlights of CancerCon. The way he spoke and told his story was like nothing I had ever seen before. He put a new and hilarious spin on the typical cancer story. I found myself walking out of the Fertility After Cancer session with a new perspective and information that I may have never known previously. Information that made me excited for the future. This was one of the greatest experiences of my life and I could not be happier that I received a scholarship and was able to start a new tradition in my life.
I am overjoyed that I was chosen to receive a scholarship and I believe this is a stepping stone in my life that will help me grow and help others in situations like mine. I never plan on missing another CancerCon in the future and I hope that one day I can help others get their first experience at CancerCon.”
We are overjoyed too Starr and we can’t wait to see all the awesome things you will do in helping others!
