Angie is a wife, a mother of three, and a stage IV oral cancer survivor.
In 2016, Angie was newly married and pregnant with her second child when her life changed completely. About halfway through her pregnancy, she noticed a sore under her tongue. She sought answers from both her primary care doctor and dentist, but the sore was initially treated as an infection. When antibiotics brought no improvement, Angie hoped it was related to her pregnancy since she had a minor oral infection during her first pregnancy.
That August, she gave birth to her second son. Angie was married to her best friend, had a job she loved, and was raising two beautiful children. It was the life she had always dreamed of. After her son was born, however, the pain from the sore became much worse. She went from having minor difficulty eating to struggling to speak and surviving on Cream of Wheat and soup broth. A couple weeks later, an oral surgeon performed a biopsy, and a week later, Angie learned that the sore was cancer.
In an instant, Angie’s happiest season became overshadowed by fear and uncertainty. Just when life felt full of possibility, cancer forced her to confront a future she had never imagined. She said the timing felt especially cruel, leaving her with one unanswered question: Why now?
Although she was terrified, Angie knew she had to fight. Her boys needed their mom, her husband needed his wife, and she had every reason in the world to keep going. A lot of testing and surgery followed quickly. The cancer was aggressive and had spread to her lymph nodes. By the day of her surgery, Angie was already stage IV.
Surgeons performed a partial glossectomy which removed two-thirds of her tongue with clear margins, performed a neck dissection, and completed a radial forearm free-flap reconstruction using tissue from her forearm, with a graft taken from her leg. The surgery reshaped not only Angie’s body, but also her sense of self. She wondered whether she would still be able to speak, how she would eat, and what everyday life with her family would look like. Now that surgery was complete, and doctors were able to finalize her treatment plan, she learned that she would need chemotherapy and radiation which would start a few weeks later. After more than a week in the hospital, she finally came home to start this new version of life.
In November of 2016, Angie began her treatments. After enduring difficult high-dose chemotherapy and head and neck radiation, Angie rang the bell in January 2017, marking the end of treatment. But treatment’s impact did not end there. Chemotherapy left her with tinnitus and permanent hearing damage, while radiation has caused severe oral health complications, fatigue, pain, difficulty swallowing, dry mouth, and changes in her speech, taste, and energy. Some of these effects remain part of her daily life, while others have emerged years later.
Angie and her husband had always dreamed of having one more child, but they were told that another pregnancy might be difficult after treatment. They made peace with the possibility that their family was complete. Then, in late 2018, life surprised them. Angie learned that she was expecting their third child. Although she was scared, they took the pregnancy one day at a time. In April 2019, their daughter was born healthy and beautiful. Angie describes her as the final piece their family needed and their true miracle.
Survivorship became a new chapter, with challenges of its own. Angie’s cancer was not HPV-related, and there was no clear explanation for why the disease had happened to her. When she discovered the Head and Neck Cancer Alliance, she began to understand that her experience could become part of her purpose.
Mental health has always been part of Angie’s story, and cancer has tested her in ways she could never have imagined. She speaks openly about the PTSD, anxiety, depression, and survivor’s guilt that can accompany head and neck cancer. Angie wants others to understand that survivorship is not only about being cancer-free. It is also about rebuilding your life, your confidence, and your sense of self, one day at a time.
Angie believes becoming a survivor ambassador is part of the reason she survived, to use her experience to help others facing head and neck cancer feel seen, understood, and less alone. By sharing both the difficult realities of treatment and the complicated journey of survivorship, she hopes to offer the honesty, encouragement, and connection she once needed herself. She wants newly diagnosed patients and fellow survivors to know that their fears, frustrations, and struggles are valid, and that even after cancer changes so much, a meaningful and joyful life is still possible. Angie continues to live with difficult side effects and real limitations, and some days are harder than others. But she also wakes up beside her husband, watches her children grow, and remains deeply grateful for every day she has been given.
Survivorship is not easy, and healing does not end when treatment does. But even through the difficult days, there is still joy, purpose, and a life worth fighting for, Angie says. Always keep moving forward.
To request Angie for your local event, please contact us at info@headandneck.org or complete the online form.
