Shanna Decker

When Shanna Decker was only seven years old, she was confronted with the scariest thing in her life: bone cancer.

In March 1998, Shanna's parents, Jack and Sherrie, took her to the family doctor after she had been walking with a limp for about three weeks. They thought she had pulled a muscle, but Shanna thought it was much more. After taking X-rays, the doctor found a large abnormality in her left leg above her knee. He immediately referred her to Mayo Clinic in Rochester for additional testing. After an exhausting day of testing at Mayo, including a CT scan, blood work, X-rays, a bone scan, an MRI and a biopsy, Shanna and her family met with her doctor to receive the results. They learned that Shanna had osteogenic sarcoma, a bone cancer.

Her mother, Sherrie, didn't hear anything after the word "cancer." "We thought she was going to die," Sherrie says. But the doctor reassured the family that Shanna's prognosis was good.

With this bone cancer, she would have to be hospitalized for about one year to receive chemotherapy treatments. This, Shanna remembers, was the beginning of the most challenging series of events in her life.

After diagnosis, she was admitted to Mayo Eugenio Litta Children's Hospital, part of Saint Marys Hospital, to begin chemotherapy. She lost her hair, became nauseous and lost weight. At first, she was depressed and hid under her covers and would not talk to the other children. But Shanna adjusted to this new life. After being at the hospital for a while, Mayo was like a big party, she says. After Shanna completed three months of chemotherapy, doctors gave her and her family three options for surgically removing the tumor in her leg. The first was a full leg amputation, which would be removing her leg at the upper thigh. The second option was a stiff leg procedure, in which a rod would be inserted into her leg, causing a loss of motion in the entire leg. The final option was rotationplasty. Doctors would amputate her leg just above the knee and turn her ankle backward to replace the knee.

After much thought, the family chose rotationplasty. When fitted with a prosthetic leg, the result resembles a below-the-knee amputation. This choice offered Shanna the most benefits so she could continue living an active lifestyle. After her amputation, she underwent intense physical therapy to regain her strength.

In December 1998, Shanna completed her cancer treatments, and the following summer, was fitted with her first prosthetic leg. She was very excited because she had either been on crutches or in a wheelchair for the past year.

Shanna's transition back into third grade was easier than she had expected. Mayo Clinic nurses and a social worker went to Plainview Elementary School in Plainview, Minn., to explain to Shanna's classmates what to expect when she returned. Once back, she was treated no differently than before her amputation.

Many times her peers would fight over who got to push her wheelchair. One friend asked her, "Those Mayo doctors are really good, right? Then why did they put your leg on backwards?" Shanna explained that Mayo doctors were indeed good, and that her leg was supposed to be like that. Now a happy, healthy 16-year-old, Shanna considers herself a "well-adjusted" young lady. She's been cancer-free for nearly nine years, and has learned to excel in life with only one leg. She's able to bike, rollerblade, ice skate, play softball, run, swim and do almost everything her friends can do. She recently received a new prosthetic leg that more closely resembles her other leg, feels like skin and allows her to walk more smoothly.

Although Shanna's prognosis initially seemed devastating, Sherrie says the family wouldn't take back her daughter's experience even if they could. "Our priorities have shifted from the fast-paced material life to the world that's really important to us — our faith, helping others and not taking even one day for granted," she says.

Shanna agrees and says that her cancer experience caused her not only to become more outgoing, but also inspired her to help others. She still keeps in close contact with the children who were in the hospital with her. She is also a mentor for other children who have been diagnosed with cancer. Since her recovery, Shanna has connected with over 50 patients experiencing rotationplasty.

"I treasure the moments spent with these families as we share our experiences and form new lifelong relationships," she says. "I have been so blessed in life, and now it is my turn to help others."

Shanna also enjoys publicly telling her story to teach others that cancer can be a positive experience. She spoke at the 2003 Golden Dreams Ball to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation, was the keynote speaker at the 2005 National Cancer Survivor's Day Celebration and most recently spoke this past summer at Camp Barnabas in Missouri during physical disabilities week.

"By turning a tragic situation in my life completely around, it can provide rich rewards not only for others, but for me as well," says Shanna. "Life does go on, and I try to convince others that if they take their experience and turn it around into something positive, life will be awesome."

In addition to her community involvement, Shanna has also given back to Mayo. She routinely speaks during pediatric nurses' orientation, has participated in a study to compare the outcome of patients with rotationplasty versus above-the-knee surgery and was featured in a Mayo Clinic Cancer Center booklet and a Mayo Clinic patient education video.

In the future, Shanna sees herself becoming a graphic designer and participating in additional motivational speaking engagements. In addition to a positive attitude, Shanna credits Mayo Clinic as a driving force behind her success. "Mayo does an excellent job of helping families deal with a cancer diagnosis, treatments and surgical procedures," she says. "I am grateful to have been treated at Mayo Clinic, but in addition to what all the staff has done for me is what God has provided for my family. He has walked side by side with us, giving us the strength we needed to get through each and every day. He is truly the ultimate physician!"