My name is Tracy Hess and I am running Grandma’s Weekend to raise money for MN Head and Neck Cancer Foundation! I am running the Half Marathon with my treatment team and my boyfriend. I have had a lot of obstacles which makes running a half marathon even more exciting! I was diagnosed with Squamous Cell Carcinoma as a newly 26 year old. I began working with Dr. Kademani and Julie Kline since the beginning. At my first diagnosis, I had an intensive surgery to remove the cancer on my tongue, which removed approximately half my tongue, removed majority of the lymph nodes in my neck and rebuilt my tongue with a portion of my thigh. I continued with 30 radiation treatments lasting about 6 weeks and spent just shy of a year in speech therapy to relearn how to speak.
Just months prior to this, I ran the Twin Cities Marathon and I knew after my cancer recovery that running would come back into my life. As I said, there have been a few more obstacles, such as distant metastatic cancer in my lung on two occasions. Throughout all this, I ran Grandma’s Weekend twice to run the half marathon but continued to struggle through these cancer diagnoses. As of July 2022, I am 5 years with no evidence of disease, and I am ready to lace up my running shoes and get another half marathon under my belt! Cancer has caused many challenges for me; communicating effectively, the long term side effects of treatment, and worry that it may not be gone forever. When I am able to move my body it’s further proof how amazing the human body is and shows me that I am truly capable of anything I put my mind to.
