Battling Aggressive Bladder Cancer in the Era of COVID – Margo’s Story

BCAN’s Joslyn Brown interviews Margo Wickerham in this special episode of Bladder Cancer Matters. Margo describes her unusual journey with bladder cancer.  She was diagnosed with an aggressive form of the disease at the time when COVID began to severely impact patients throughout the U.S.  Her type of bladder cancer was discovered only after seeking a second opinion, and the second set of doctors learned that her cancer was fast-growing and dangerous.

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Our guest is an incredible woman and bladder cancer survivor, Margo. In this episode, Margo details her battle with cancer, the loneliness she felt during treatment and how gratitude pulled her out of the dark. Keep listening to hear Margo share her inspiring story.

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Until January 2020, I had always felt like I had an unspoken agreement with cancer: I’d make good lifestyle choices — protecting my skin, avoiding tobacco and exercising regularly — and it would leave me alone.

I thought we had a deal. Because there’s no history of cancer in my family. I’ve never worked in a chemical factory. And, up until last year, I’d gone more than half a century without so much as a peep out of cancer. Read more.

Margo never expected to develop bladder cancer, let alone two versions at the same time.

When Margo noticed something was off, she visited her OB/GYN, then a urologist and urologist oncologist. If she hadn’t advocated for herself, she would not have gone to MD Anderson and discovered a second diagnosis of plasmacytoid, a rare and often deadly form of bladder cancer.

Margo underwent intense chemotherapy and a radical cystectomy to save her life. Margo shares her story of dealing with loss and isolation during treatment, finding humor and the sliver linings in life, and writing a book about her incredible journey.