'Life: burning it up as I’

LA Mott, of Kansas City, Missouri, beat cancer 20 years ago.

“Cancer introduced me to many who had cancer. It struck when I was 40 and seems like it left me with a desire to make life better for others, though I was like that before. I think it made me go ahead and have a part of my life I needed and that I was ignoring. It made me leave a person I was with for 15 years as I knew they were unhealthy for me.

“I was diagnosed in 1995, read some books, had some tests, surgery, chose my chemo over 18 weeks (CMF) after having a second opinion. I did not allow anyone to help me decide. Took Tamoxifen for 5 years. Done. Had insurance through employer. I was off work nine weeks for surgery, worked while having chemo, then took five weeks vacation after chemo and went to a retreat.

“It was scary. It made me have my life when I saw I might now have that much time left. It was 20 years ago.”

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LA’s six words to describe her cancer experience are “Life: burning it up as I.” Share your six words here.

LA’s words, which were shared digitally through Tell KC, have been lightly edited for clarity.

As part of a local reporting project around the upcoming Ken Burns documentary series, Cancer: The Emperor of All Maladies, KCPT presents Cancer in KC.

We want to learn more about how cancer affects our community. How has cancer impacted your life? Share your story.