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Mallory’s journey with melanoma began in January of 2018, at the age of 33, when she learned that a mole she had removed from her back was melanoma. She underwent surgery to remove the mole and surrounding tissue as well as two lymph nodes. The surgery yielded clean margins and her lymph nodes were thankfully negative. Moving forward, she had regular visits with the dermatologist and had numerous moles removed for the next couple of years, some being very invasive.

 

In June of 2020, Mallory started having respiratory symptoms causing her to see numerous doctors, each giving varied diagnoses from bronchitis to a herniated diaphragm. When her symptoms were not improving despite multiple treatments, Mallory visited the ER in August. A CT scan revealed a 10cm mass in her lung. She underwent a biopsy and the initial pathology revealed that it was a rare type of cancer, Ewing’s Sarcoma. The treatment plan consisted of intense chemo for three months, followed by surgery to remove the tumor and more chemo afterwards. Mal underwent her chemo treatments like a champ. They made her very sick and were very challenging, but she was fighting for her life and gave it everything she had.
 

In January 2021 she had a partial lobectomy to remove the remaining tumor and the surrounding part of her lung.

 

The tumor was fully removed and revealed good margins, however, the pathology came back as melanoma. This changed the course of her treatment plan to immunotherapy. She started her immunotherapy and shortly after started experiencing extreme headaches. Her doctor instructed her to visit the ER where imaging revealed metastatic melanoma lesions in her brain. Mallory continued to fight with everything she had, undergoing several rounds of immunotherapy, three rounds of brain radiation, and three craniotomies. Unfortunately, her body had been through too much and she was unable to recover from her final surgery which took place in October 2021. Mallory died in the hospital on November 1, 2021, surrounded by her family.

 

We honor her legacy through MALS Foundation, both by raising awareness and giving back to others who find themselves unfortunately fighting this awful disease.

 

 

 

Why Sunflowers?

 

Sunflowers were Mallory's favorite. Sunflowers are also symbolic of the sun, and most often symbolize happiness, hope and strength