Single mom films emotional plea after finding out colon cancer was causing her unexpected weight loss
A young nurse who had been unexpectedly losing weight took to Facebook to share an emotional video after she discovered she had cancer.
Jennifer Waller was diagnosed with colon cancer at age 32 and tearily used Facebook to warn others of the possibility.
The single mom of two broke down as she explains that the condition usually affects people over 50, but she was an exception to the rule.
Despite her young age, Waller, who lives in Clifton, N.J., went to the doctor after she mysteriously began to lose weight and “felt off.”
After undergoing a colonoscopy, she was given the devastating news she was in the rare minority of people who develop the illness in their younger years.
“When I woke up [the doctor] told me I had a large tumor,” she said. “It was a shock because I can’t have cancer. I’m a nurse. I take care of people. I tell people you have cancer. I treat you. I can’t have cancer.”
“Yet here I am, saying the words that make me so nauseous.”
Before being screened for cancer, Waller had her breasts checked and underwent countless blood tests. Now she’s hoping her emotional video will help warn others that they could still be at risk.
“I made this video because here in the U.S. you don’t screen until you’re 50 years old. That’s 18 years from now,” she said.
“I mean, according to my biopsy, I would be dead. And if I hadn’t gone in and if hadn’t been aware of my body, I would have been dead.”
Her powerful message has since gone viral, being viewed more than 27,000 times since it was posted on Aug. 29.
Waller’s colleagues have since started a GoFundMe to help her cover any lost wages during her time off for treatment.
Despite admitting that her cancer was already spreading, the single mom seems determined to stay positive, vowing not to “feel bad” for herself.
“I’m not going to be a victim,” she said. “I’m not going to feel bad for myself. I’m going to fight.”
“I’m going to fight like hell and no matter where this road brings me, and no matter where I end up I’m always going to be on top,” she continued. “So cancer, let’s dance. I’m ready.”
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