During National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, Young Florida Woman Proves Condition Can Strike Those Who Least Expect It
Dr. Lauren Juyia shares her experience of being diagnosed and treated for colon cancer at 37 years old.
As the healthcare community recognized March as National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, a 37-year-old Florida doctor who thought she was in perfect health today is living proof colon cancer can strike those who least suspect it and in ways most never imagined.
It was August 2022 when, seemingly out of nowhere, Dr. Lauren Juyia of Palm Harbor first noticed the feel of bulging masses when she pressed on her pelvis.
“It felt the same as a 16-week pregnancy,” she recalls while relying on her knowledge as a physician board certified in obstetrics and gynecology.
An exam at HCA Florida Oak Hill Hospital in Brooksville detected ovarian masses up to 24 cm in size. Surgery at HCA Florida Trinity Hospital quickly ensued where doctors removed the masses for evaluation in post-operative pathology.
That’s when the news broke no one expected. The young mother of two had colon cancer, another stark reminder the disease can strike those in their younger years.
“I’m the lowest-risk person you could imagine,” she says. “I’m active, a non-smoker, and a lifelong vegetarian with no family history of colorectal cancer. You can imagine my shock when I heard the news.”
Fewer than five percent of colon cancers metastasize to the ovaries. In most cases, colorectal cancer cells can break away from the original tumor and travel through the blood to the liver.
With little time to waste, Lauren began five-hour outpatient infusions every other week for 12 weeks. Midway into her 12 rounds of chemotherapy, tests revealed no evidence of colon cancer with the exception of an inactive, 1.2-cm tumor. She joined smiling doctors and nurses to ring her end-of-treatment bell on Monday, March 13.
At the end of March, she had surgery to remove the inactive tumor.
Now with a chance to reflect on her emotional journey, Lauren’s message is clear.
“Any symptoms that persist for more than two weeks should be checked out by your doctor,” she says. “Recognize the opportunity to get screened for anything that’s recommended. Don’t squander that opportunity and most of all, be aware.”