In 2007, our family knew nothing about HPV. As with most parents, we wanted to watch over our children, especially when they started going out with friends and dating. The possibility of advanced cervical cancer never crossed our minds.

 Our daughter Kristen was 22 years old, a Noblesville High School alumni, graduated from Indiana University with a BS in Business and a double major in Human Resources and Management in May 2007.

Her greatest attributes were her ability to love everyone and her strength of character. Even when things were not going well, she never gave up. She had a great sense of humor and a wonderful laugh. Her quick wit always produced good one-liners. She looked forward to seeing her brother Eric get married, help him pick out the engagement ring and be in his wedding. She wanted to be healthy again, marry and have a family of her own. She never had that opportunity.

She had just opened a new, exciting chapter in her life:  fresh out of college,  a promising career with Walgreen’s in management… and then the very next month she called me to wish me a Happy Father’s Day, and she started to cry because her right leg had swelled up. We spent the next year fighting advanced cervical cancer and said goodbye on June 1st, 2008.

In those 11 months of Kristen’s fight, she had 14 procedures and surgeries. She had to deal with radiation and chemo side effects. She was taking 18 prescription drugs for the cancer and the side effects of the treatments. 

The compassion and support of the doctors, nurses, medical staff, pharmacists, physical therapists, transporters and EMTs were unwavering throughout her illness. Everyone took part in Kristen’s battle like supporting soldiers. They encouraged us, hugged us, cried with us, ate meals with us, celebrated the small victories with us and ultimately grieved with us. They were guardian angels in Kristen’s year long journey and soldiers in her war.

During her final year Kristen never lost her faith, her sense of humor or the will to fight. Brenda and I felt we needed to tell her story. I started assembling her story as therapy for me to get through the grieving process. The more I got into the task at hand, the more I uncovered about my daughter and her illness. Suddenly, this project became a mission to not only tell Kristen’s story but to tell it in a way that may guide other parents onto a path of keeping their children healthy and protected from HPV.

Kristen left behind 17 personal journals written since middle school. The last two were about her cancer journey. We used these 2 journals and our notes and created her story in a book titled “Love, Kristen”. Kristen’s own journal entries, our email updates to friends and her poetry provided the framework to tell her story.

We released the book in March 2009, and there are now over 3,000 copies in circulation. They can be found in Iraq, Afghanistan, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, Great Britain and India. We have shared Kristen’s story at several college campuses as part of HPV Awareness Initiatives. We collaborated together with the Marion County Health Dept and the Indiana Fever women’s basketball team for a Public Service Announcement regarding their “Every Shot Counts” initiative using Kristen’s story. We work closely with the Indiana State Dept of Health and the Indiana Immunization Coalition on HPV Education Summits.

I have had the opportunity to do several radio and TV interviews including appearing on the Dr. Oz Show in October 2012 and NPR’s Sound Medicine Show. Kristen’s experience has been published in the Oncology Nursing Society’s Monthly magazine and was part of a case study about cervical cancer. UCLA and UC Berkley have used her story in student nursing lectures. Brenda and I were invited to Washington DC to share Kristen’s story at the Women In Government group’s Health Summit with female state legislators from all 50 states. Kristen’s story is now part of HPV Education Initiatives in 24 states. This is much more than even we could have ever imagined. This is Kristen’s legacy.