Get to know the GLO Girls and how their stories inspire everyone around them.
My name is Lily Cain. In April 2020 I was diagnosed with stage 2 Hodgkins Lymphoma. Throughout the COVID quarantine, I had been feeling overly fatigued and was getting sharp chest pains. As a 16-year-old, I thought nothing of it. Until I found a large lump on the left side of my neck that wouldn't go away. After multiple doctor's visits, scans and surgeries, I was diagnosed. I started my first round of chemotherapy treatment on May 11, 2020. Throughout that summer I underwent four rounds of intensive chemotherapy. After my second round of chemotherapy, scans revealed that my body was responding well to the treatment. There were no signs of any cancer modules left! After finishing my last two rounds, I was declared cancer-free on August 4th, 2020!
I was diagnosed with osteosarcoma of the right proximal tibia back in March. Prior to my diagnosis I was having a lot of knee pain that was inconsistent for months. Getting the cancer diagnosis was very unexpected. I had chemotherapy for 10 weeks and then I had my Rotationplasty surgery in May. Rotationplasty is when they take the middle part of your leg out and turn your tibia and foot 180 degrees and then reattach it to your femur. After a short break I did about 20 more weeks of chemotherapy. Last week on the 20th I was able to ring the bell for no more chemotherapy! I still have a long road ahead of scans, appointments, PT, and relearning to walk and drive but I'm thankful to be where I am today.
A friend recommended my daughter, Audrey, for the GLO program. I didn't know much about it, but after my first phone call with Carly, I knew it was going to be an amazing experience that we would never forget. Cancer tries to take away your voice. It tries to take away your light. GLO gives that back to the participants.
I am so grateful for the experience and the pictures. On the day of the shoot, Audrey felt special. The whole day was about her and what she liked. It wasn't about cancer, doctors, and appointments. She could be herself. Her beautiful smile came out.
The pictures captured a moment in time. Audrey was so sick. I look back on that time fondly now, not something I thought was possible at the time. Because even at the worst time in Audrey's cancer journey, she pushed through and didn't let it get her down. The pictures show that. It shows her spirit. It shows her smile. It shows her determination. It's amazing to look at the pictures now and see how much she has changed on the outside and the inside.
The pictures help us remember a moment in time. If we choose to forget that trying time, we let cancer win. We will always remember and we will always fight to let kids, especially girls, battling cancer have their light GLO!
In December 2022 I was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma. I went through 40 weeks of chemotherapy and 33 radiation treatments. October of 2023 they found that the tumor was gone so I was placed in remission. May of 2024 I had gotten my scans done but they had found something on my lung so I got that biopsy to see what it was and turns out it was another cancer spot. I’m now doing 8 cycles of chemotherapy and more radiation at the end of the cycles.