BY: EBENEZER NKUNDA

There are 2400 students at Cary High. 2400 different stories of pain, happiness, success, failure, challenge, and overcoming obstacles. September is childhood cancer awareness month, and as it closes out, what better way to spread awareness than to share one of Cary High’s own stories of overcoming. Lindy Gupton is a senior here at Cary, well known for being a Gang Green Leader and Varsity Tennis Captain, as well as for all her spirit. Apart from this, there’s a side to her that most people don’t know. 

When Lindy was just one year old, she was diagnosed with Neuroblastoma. A particularly aggressive form of cancer, Neuroblastoma is most commonly formed in the nerve tissue on top of the kidneys, known as the adrenal glands. Being most prevalent in ages five or below, this illness is the third most common childhood cancer, one of the most deadly– only 67% of children diagnosed with Neuroblastoma live up to five years. 

Obviously, this was scary for Lindy and her family, but they didn’t give up. Lindy went through years of treatment, including chemotherapy, a bone marrow transplant, and five different types of surgeries. Neuroblastoma was not the only thing Lindy had to overcome; she fought through pneumonia, cellulitis, osteochondroma, and sepsis, all of which are extremely life-threatening. Nevertheless, she persevered. I can’t speak for those of you reading this, but I don’t know if even I, a 17-year-old, would be able to handle that. Lindy’s fight for her life as a two-year-old deserves nothing but RESPECT. 

Lindy spent years going in and out of hospitals and she was finally in remission at three years old. She now goes to the hospital once a year to see her oncologist, and she spends the rest of her time living life as she should—proud. She’s Lindy Gupton: Gang Green Member, Varsity Tennis Captain, Cancer Survivor.

Featured Picture shows Lindy Gupton (right) with her Mom and Sister in 2003