Hollan is being treated for stage 3A small cell carcinoma of the ovary, an extremely rare kind of cancer.

Hollan’s symptoms–severe pain in her abdomen and under her stomach, bloating, hot flashes, and fever–started back in November 2023. She initially shrugged them off as nothing more than gas pains, but saw a doctor when they persisted; only to be told that all she had was a urinary tract infection and to be sent home with antibiotics.

Hollan got a second opinion, but was told that it was nothing more than a really bad stomach virus. She returned to the emergency room and insisted on a CT scan, which revealed a volleyball-sized mass in her abdomen along with 19 lbs of fluid. The doctors successfully removed both fluid and mass and sent the mass to pathology. After a month, the diagnosis came back: stage 3A small cell ovarian cancer.

Hollan and her family quickly found a specialist in Cincinnati who could treat her cancer. He ended up administering HIPEC. The treatment was successful. Despite side effects such as hair loss, bad mouth sores, significant hearing loss, neuropathy in her extremities, and reduced kidney function, she is now NED. She is now preparing to undergo a stem cell transplant as part of her treatment.

Hollan’s experience has helped her develop a completely new outlook on life. “Cancer has absolutely changed me and changed my mindset about life and death,” she says. Having had mental health struggles in the past, her brush with cancer has fortified her will to live. She urges fellow cancer patients to listen to your body and advocate for yourself.

“You just have to get through cancer and whatever that means to you, make it be what you live for… So I just hope that you can find something that will hold you here.”