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Honorary survivor Christi Anne Gibson, center, is joined by her family to lead the survivor lap at the start of the 2018 Relay For Life of Northeast Colorado on Saturday, June 9, at Columbine Park in Sterling. — Sterling Journal-Advocate photo

Haxtun survivor shares heartfelt thanks at Relay For Life

Christi Anne Gibson says cancer research gave her ‘bonus years’

    Dozens of residents from Logan and Phillips counties gathered at Columbine Park on Saturday, June 9, to “Strike Out Cancer” at the annual Relay For Life of Northeast Colorado.
    Richard Ontiveros, who served as the emcee for the event, said at the opening ceremony, “We have the advantage over cancer because of the generosity of people like you. You have courage, hope, empathy, determination, and together we can make the greatest impact to save lives.”
    The ceremony also featured honorary survivor Christi Anne Gibson of Haxtun sharing her story. Gibson credited her mom, a 14-year breast cancer survivor, as her “reason for Relaying.” Since her treatment, Gibson’s mom has seen the birth of  four more grandchildren and one great-grandchild, “and that’s what we’re all about tonight,” Gibson said.
    Gibson said the work of the American Cancer Society enables survivors to enjoy “bonus years, the years we get to enjoy as a gift.”
    The mother of two has had a much closer encounter with cancer in the past year. Her husband had a mole that turned out to be malignant melanoma, but fortunately it was caught early enough that he only requires regular screenings.
    Gibson herself, however, was not as fortunate. After discovering a lump in her breast last August, she was diagnosed with an aggressive and rare form of breast cancer that required four months of chemotherapy and a double mastectomy.
    Shortly after her diagnosis, Gibson said, she received a postcard from ACS asking for her annual donation. Although she threw it away, figuring she would spend enough money on cancer, she realized as she went through treatment how important the organization’s years of research are.
    She has a friend who also was diagnosed with a different type of breast cancer a day after her. The two women’s treatments have been completely different, she said, because of the research that has identified what treatments are most effective for different forms of cancer.
    “You guys have been a part of that,” she said to the gathered Relay participants.
    Gibson received referrals to ACS “at every step” of her treatment.
    “If I needed financial assistance, if I needed lodging, if I needed someone to talk to in the middle of the night ­— that’s what the American Cancer Society is. You always wonder where your money really goes when you make donations, if it’s really helping the people that need it the most. And I’m here to tonight to tell you, ‘Yes, it really does.’”

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