Photograph by Jacqueline Ramseyer
True Warrior: Campbell resident Susan Davenport, whose mother is a breast cancer survivor, was in high spirits afer a day that included 19 miles of walking and feet covered with blisters. Davenport has Hodgkin's Disease and was a participant in the Avon Breast Cancer 3-Day walk.
Walk raises money for breast cancer
Campbell resident Susan Davenport joins walk to find a cure
By Erin Mayes
After a 19-mile walk, Susan Davenport felt more energized than she had all day. Sure, her legs wobbled whenever she stood and her toes were a mess of torn blisters, but the feeling of being alive kept a smile on her face.
Davenport, a Campbell resident, participated in the Avon Breast Cancer 3-Day walk of more than 60 miles from Santa Clara to San Francisco from July 27 to 29 along with more than 3,000 other men and women. The event, one of nine of its kind in the country this year, hoped to raise more than the $7 million it raised last year, which was its first year.
The walkers, who each raised more than $1,900 individually, gained the strength of being together in the struggle against a disease that claims more than 40,000 American lives every year.
Davenport, 31, has Hodgkin's Disease, also known as lymphoma, a malignancy of lymphoid tissue found in the lymph nodes, spleen, liver, and bone marrow.
For Davenport, this walk was personal.
"I wanted to do something cancer-related," she said. "I felt like this would be a good challenge to myself to feel human again and not feel like a sick person."
One month after finding out that the tumor surrounding her heart had stabilized, Davenport signed up for the walk.
The construction manager's mother is also a breast cancer survivor, so Davenport is partially walking for her. Her mother got cancer and had a double mastectomy when Davenport was in only the second grade. Getting breast cancer is something she worries about, especially having undergone radiation and chemo therapy in the chest area, leaving herself vulnerable to disease.
As it was, the treatment Davenport received caused her hair and toenails to fall out. Heavy doses of steroids caused her to gain weight and further treatment burned her esophagus and throat and damaged her salivary glands. Now unable to produce saliva, she has to wash her food down with glass after glass of water.
Davenport, who has been married for almost three years and is the step-mother to a 7-year-old son, trained daily for about six months.
For more information about the event, call 888.3DAY.AVON or visit www.breastcancer3day.org.
Campbell, California
