NSU Horizons Spring/Summer 2009

alumni journal 32 horizons What Could Not Destroy Her Made Her Stronger By Alan Hancock T he symptoms started just as Meaghan Edelstein was begin- ning the second semester of her second year of law school. There was bleeding, exhaustion, and extreme pain. Weeks went by before the problem was finally diagnosed: Edelstein had advanced cervical cancer. At age 28, she was given a 20 percent chance of survival. That was in February of 2007. Edelstein dropped out of law school and immediately began intense chemotherapy and radiation treatments. She also had multiple surgeries as she fought for her life. Fast-forward to December 2008. On stage in front of family, friends, professors, and classmates, Edel- stein—now cancer free and a vocal advocate for cervical cancer aware- ness—received her degree from the Shepard Broad Law Center at Nova Southeastern University. “Cancer takes so much from you. But, I wasn’t going to let it take away my chance to be an attorney,” she said. Edelstein’s battle with cancer was a difficult one. Misdiagnoses by numerous doctors before the cancer was discovered had her in excruciat- ing pain and going days at a time without sleep. It wasn’t until Edel- stein checked herself into an emer- gency room that a CT scan revealed a tumor on her cervix. The tumor had grown so large that it had crushed her uterus and ripped open her kid- neys. Once she was stable enough to travel, she was transferred from South Florida to the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in her hometown of Boston to undergo treatments. Five months later, in July 2007, doctors declared Edelstein cancer free. Then came the difficult task of moving forward. One month after being deemed cancer free, Edelstein reenrolled at NSU’s Law Center. “I was terrified of going back to school,” she said. “So much had happened that I worried, ‘Am I going to remember every- thing? Am I going to be the same person?’ I figured if I didn’t go back right away, I would never go back. So, I decided I was just going to go for it.” It turns out that Edelstein didn’t have to worry because she quickly adjusted to her return to law school. “She managed somehow to defy all the odds and come through intact. People don’t readily recover from that type of cancer,” said Michael Richmond, a professor for whom Edelstein served as a teacher’s assistant. “She was always a very good student. When she came back, she realized that something very special had happened with her, so she took advantage of having a second shot.” In the summer of 2008, Edelstein created a blog called “I Kicked Cancer’s @ss” to chronicle her experience. Her initial purpose of writing the blog was to find a therapeutic release, to be able to tell her story and move forward. But it also quickly became a resource for others dealing with the disease. “Even though cancer was a terrible experience, it brought a lot of good things into my life,” Edelstein said. “I want to help other people. When I was sick, I felt really lonely and couldn’t find anyone who went through what I was going through. Now, I constantly hear from people who have advanced cervical cancer who are so excited to find my blog. It’s a resource for them, helping them to think, ‘Okay, I’m about to go on this awful adventure. What kind of things do I have to expect? And there’s someone who lived. And they’re living a good life, and they graduated from law school!’ I want to give that to people.” The blog, at http://cancerlost .blogspot.com , receives more than 25,000 visits a month. It also provides links to resources for those fighting cancer and information on the detection and treatment of cervical cancer. Although Edelstein has been cancer free for two years now, she still deals with the effects of the disease on a daily basis. She is unable to have children, and she had her kidney removed in April 2009. She also has stacks of medical bills as a result of her medical insurance dropping her after the cancer was detected. Despite the ongoing battle, Edelstein remains positive and even thankful for her experience. “Cancer is always going to be a big part of my life. It happened to me for a reason,” she said. “Do I want to go through it again? No. Would I take it back? No. I would never take it back. I’m not going to take a life lesson and put it to the side. It was a gift.” Having recently received the news that she passed the Florida Bar exam, Edelstein feels confident that her NSU law school education will lead her to more of life’s lessons and gifts—and more ways to give to others. n (Left to right) Athornia Steele, dean of the NSU Law Center; graduate Meaghan Edelstein; and Edelstein’s father