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08-09-2004, 08:54 AM | #1 |
YT 6000 Club Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 6,238
| [News] Yorkie Helps a Swimmer Defeat Cancer Good heartwarming story, and she has a Yorkie to boot! Best of luck to this Florida gal! --- One dollar. It reminds Amanda Gullen that records are made to be broken and the cancer she has is meant to be defeated. Gullen's swim coach made that bet with her -- one dollar if she broke the state record in the 100-meter butterfly. At 10, Gullen won her first dollar at the Junior Olympics in Largo. "I didn't realize it at the time," she said, "but it's something that means a lot to me. I worked hard to do it." The bet included dousing her coach with a 5-gallon water cooler full of ice, which she gladly did. When Gullen, a graduate of Lake Region High School, returned home in May from her first year at the University of Florida, this same coach made that bet once again. But this time it was under much more serious circumstances. Gullen had discovered a lump on the left side of her neck. After several visits to various doctors, Gullen, 19, learned that the lump was caused by a type of cancer named high grade Burkitt's lymphoma. Suddenly she was left trembling. But with these doubts she dove in headfirst. And with the grace and power of only a butterfly swimmer, she fights. Burkitt's lymphoma is a highly aggressive form of cancer that is rare in the United States and most commonly diagnosed in people younger than 35, according to Dr. Robert Cassell of the Lakeland Regional Cancer Center. Doctors treat Burkitt's with intense chemotherapy and other medications. Gullen's fight began about a month ago. It includes eight months of aggressive chemotheraphy for five-day periods, every 21 days until her cancer remits. Even though the chemotherapy weakens her both physically and mentally, the energy of a 19-year-old athlete still glows in her eyes and smile. "Once you start something," she said, "no matter how hard it gets, you still have to continue on." Her athletic prowess began at age 5 when she started swimming. She trained with a coach, attended several summer camps at the University of Florida and Auburn University, and entered five to six competitive events a year. The 5-year-old swimmer became a dominant force by age 10. "I swam because I was good," she said. At Lake Region, Gullen's focus changed. Adolescent distractions absent in her younger days overwhelmed her, she says. The morning practices at 5 a.m. became more of a habit and the afternoon ones a nuisance. Gullen, voted most athletic in her class for her efforts in swimming, tennis, soccer and weight lifting, still managed to qualify for states in swimming all four years of high school. Three of the years she swam with her younger sister, Meghan, and was coached by her mother, Cathy Cameron. These motivational motherdaughter and sister-sister bonds have been even more apparent in the past three months. When Meghan found out Amanda would lose her hair as a result of the chemotherapy, she trimmed hers off -- partially. "I didn't want her to do it by herself," Meghan said. In June, the sisters donated their hair to Locks of Love, a charitable organization that provides wigs to disadvantaged children suffering from medical hair loss. Because the chemotherapy attacks some of the healthy blood cells in her body in addition to the cancerous ones, Gullen is very sensitive to her external environment. This means no tanning in the sun, jet skiing on the lake, shopping at the mall, watching movies at the theater, eating vegetables from the market or swimming in the pool. The cancer forced Gullen to trade in her rubber swim caps for snow and baseball caps, Spandex swim suits for pajamas and intense athletics for evening walks with her grandfather, Wayne Buckner. Her friends and parents, though, are making the transition a little less difficult. Gullen's friends congregate often at her house and the hospital. They bring movies, conversation and a sense of normalcy. "It's hard not being able to do anything," she said. Meanwhile, Max, the black and brown Yorkshire terrier that lived with her at the University of Florida, lies in her lap. He is her faithful and everlasting companion. "They help me get through it," Gullen added. Every morning Gullen and her mother plan a list of activities for the day because visits to the hospital are often and unpredictable. "Tomorrow always has a focus," Cameron said. "So you can get up each day." A normal day consists of a constant regimen -- medications, some yoga and plenty of snacking. Gullen has also enrolled in a health and wellness class at Polk Community College to continue her education. Most of the day she spends inside. Gullen reads books (the "Left Behind" series) and reteaches herself the guitar. "I've always been really busy," she said about her newfound free time. "I never had a chance before." Two to three evenings a week Gullen strolls around the block with her grandfather. They converse, breathe in the fresh air and view the summer sunsets. "I appreciate everything more," she said. "I think about everything more." Though this is quite a change from her athletic days of the past, Gullen's gleaming optimism shines through as it always has. "When I beat this," she said, "the first thing I'll do is dump a bucket of ice on my coach's head." And then collect her second dollar. http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.d...408090333/1004 |
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08-09-2004, 04:09 PM | #2 |
Donating YT 7000 Club Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Alabama, etc.
Posts: 9,031
| WOW!! That is so sad but sounds like one determined girl! I hope things go well for her! Should cause us all to be more thankful for good health!
__________________ Toto's Mom - http://www.dogster.com/?206581 Yorkie Rescue Colorado - http://www.yorkierescuecolorado.com/ "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has limits." -- Albert Einstein |
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