PHOENIX -- Hundreds of Valley residents are expected to turn out Monday morning in Phoenix to participate in the Torch Relay for Children's Miracle Network.
It's a multiday event that traverses the country every fall and includes a walking, running and cycling event to raise funds for the local children's hospitals. In this case the money will go to Phoenix Children's Hospital. Among the people lacing up their tennis shoes was Megan Oleno.
She was diagnosed in April of this year when she noticed a lump in her neck.
Her parents then took her to the ER at another hospital and she was transferred to PCH.
At PCH, doctors did a biopsy and found out that it was early stages of Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a form of cancer that attacks the lymph nodes, but can take over entire body. Megan's mom Andee learned it's not a common disease and only about 8,000 females and children are diagnosed every year.
Megan then had three cycles of chemotherapy and 14 days of radiation. As a competitive soccer player Megan said the hardest part was not being able to play for a while.
The next difficult part was knowing that she’d lose her hair during the chemo.
Her mom says once she tackled those two things she accepted it and went on with her normal life spending time with her friends.
Her family recently found out Megan is officially in remission and doing well.
“I wish we could bottle her energy and sell it," said Megan's mom Andee.
"She’s athletic, has a plethora of friends. Her boyfriend Kyle was with her every day. There were always 10 people at the house with her and supporting her. She’s absolutely amazing. Megan is my hero. Didn’t let this destroy who she was," she said.
The Torch Relay starts at 9:30 a.m. Monday with registration starting at 9 a.m..
Find out more information.
