In June, More than 50 local teen cancer survivors, patients and their guests enjoyed a night of dancing and fun at the fourth annual prom hosted by Carly’s Club, a social support program at Roswell Park.

Three days after Emily’s 19th birthday, she received the devastating news that she had stage 3 malignant melanoma, one of the most serious forms of skin cancer. She was given less than a 59 percent chance of surviving the next five years. In a state of shock, she felt her only options were fight or flight – to face her diagnosis head-on or to live in fear – and she chose to fight.

I hope my story can help someone else, especially other young moms. So many people are depending on you, and it can feel so overwhelming. You’re tired and emotional, but you have to be strong in front of your kids. You don’t want them to worry, and that alone makes it doubly exhausting.

Last winter, I had a sudden-onset headache. My primary care physician sent me to a specialist, who ordered multiple scans, and the next thing I knew, I was being told I had a meningioma, a benign brain tumor.

Young adult survivor, J.G., shares his experience with testicular cancer and how the largest, annual young adult cancer convention helped him get his life back on track.

Laurie Page of Cheektowaga, NY, was diagnosed in the summer of 2016 with a rare carcinoid tumor in her abdomen. The prognosis wasn’t good. “They didn’t give me long to live,” she said. “I was down to 92 pounds.” Page was referred to Roswell Park and received treatment under the care of gastrointestinal surgical oncologist Dr. Moshim Kukar, whom she calls a “miracle worker.”

As a young adult cancer patient, I craved a sense of normality. Going to work every day helped me maintain my routine, and for 8 hours, I tricked myself into believing nothing was out of the ordinary.

Everyone has a story to tell. Whether on a first date, job interview or happy hour with a new friend, there’s always a select version of our story that we choose to share. It usually includes where we went to school and how we found ourselves where we are today.

I have been battling cancer successfully for 11 years. Looking back at my first diagnosis — stage 2 breast cancer, at age 42 — I downplay it now, because what happened next was so tragic.