Bald Ballerina 3rd Birthday

Today Bald Ballerina celebrates her 3rd birthday!Her life began filled with hope despite a very poor medical prognosis: stage 4 metastatic breast cancer that had spread to the sternum, spine, and pelvis; median life expectancy 2-3 years; no cure on the horizon.  This was very hard to accept. I was only 23. I wondered how many years would I live? Would I be able to dance? If so, for how long? I wanted to live and to dance for a long time. I decided medical statistics would not determine how long I would live.    I learned that I would need both medical and moral support to keep the cancer at bay. So I became the Bald Ballerina. She was born to share the beauty of life with others, and to tell the world that breast cancer does not discriminate: No one is too young; No one is too fit; No one is immune from breast cancer. With your help and support, Bald Ballerina’s message spread and became a social media movement. I am very grateful to everyone who has followed my journey and supported me with encouraging messages, prayers, suggestions, and donations. I treasure and appreciate them all. With your continued support and prayers, I hope to have many, many more years of living and dancing. Here are some of the highlights of Bald Ballerina’s 3rd year:  ·All scans were NEAD: No Evidence of Active Disease ·Visited India and saw the Taj Mahal – a dream I’ve had since childhood ·Returned to NYC to perform with my friends at Joffrey ·Spoke on Capitol Hill about living with metastatic breast cancer for the Tigerlily Foundation · Walked in NY Fashion Week for AnaOno and #Cancerland    NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt : featured in Tom Costello’s story about the high cost of drugs · People: ‘Bald Ballerina’ Keeps Dancing · NowThis: This Ballerina Is Dancing Her Way Through Terminal Cancer · Glamour Magazine’s video “Every Scar Tells a Story” won Webby award · ABC-TV People’s List : featured in Thrive Causemetics Safe Beauty Products · Mercy Medical Center, Baltimore, MD (my hospital) chose me for a Patient Story video      Dance Informa : Overcoming Obstacles; Finding Fulfillment  · Produced my 3rd No One Can Survive Alone benefit dance concert · Visited Salt Lake City for the 1st time and taught class for Allison DeBona ’s The artÉmotion Summer Intensive  · Spoke about breast cancer and performed at the Dancers Care Foundation Benefit and at Starbound National Talent Competition showcase. · Judged my 1st dance competition · Continued teaching three nights/week at local dance studios · Continued teaching master classes and speaking to young dancers about breast cancer · Continued performing on a freelance basis I can’t wait to see what is in store for the Bald Ballerina in the coming years. Thank you to everyone who has shared my journey and who made these wonderful experiences possible. I can’t begin to express how much your support means to me.