Hear Melissa's story, shared at our 2022 Anal Cancer Patient Summit.
Sharing your story will help dispel the myths associated with the disease. Contact us if you want to be featured on our Thriver Stories!
Video transcription
Hello fellow thrivers!
My name is Melissa Rickenbacher.
In August 2018, I was diagnosed with stage IV HPV-related anal cancer. I immediately sought a second opinion because I knew that anal cancer is a rare cancer, and I wanted to find an oncology team that deals with it frequently.
I was fortunate enough to find an oncology team that deals with it on a weekly basis. They immediately put me on the platinum-based chemotherapy drugs cisplatin, once a week for about 6 weeks, 96 hours of 5FU each week for about 6 weeks, and extended radiation. It was a tough treatment, but I was able to get through it with my oncology team, the medications they gave me, their encouragement, my family, my cheeky sense of humour and most importantly, my faith.
In February of 2019 I was declared No Evidence of Disease (NED). Since that time, I have made it one of my biggest goals to get out there and educate people on anal cancer. Sadly, because it is one of the cancers below the belt, people are ashamed to tell people that they have anal cancer. They are embarrassed to talk about it. Also, because it is often times related to sex. People just feel embarrassed.
Well, I want to tell people, I am one of the faces of anal cancer. And there is no shame in anal cancer. Just like there is no shame in anal cancer, there is no shame in seeking mental help resources. It is a hard diagnosis, and it is so important for us to be able to talk to somebody that as a neutral party can give us tools in our toolbox to be able to deal with that. That goes for caretakers too.
One of the amazing gifts that the Anal Cancer Foundation gives us is Peer to Peer support. I am one of the peer supports, and it is a wonderful gift. Not only to the people that are seeking out encouragement, but also to the peers that are helping those. It is one of the greatest gifts I have been given during this time
I hope that you will join me in telling people your story, and destigmatising anal cancer.
Remember there is no shame in anal cancer.
Looking for someone to talk to about your anal cancer diagnosis? We are here to help. The Peer to Peer Support Program is a free service provided by the Anal Cancer Foundation that matches anal cancer thrivers (our word for survivors) and caregivers with thriver volunteers and caregiver volunteers.
