Read time: 4 minutes
When the small plane reaches altitude, Erin Hurst braces herself for a tandem jump strapped to a . Freefalling high over Moab, she breathes it all in鈥攖he sunshine, blue sky, the red rocks below, and the future she once thought wasn鈥檛 possible. Erin, now a senior at , got an aggressive cancer on her hand during her first year in college. The people in her hometown, Cleveland, Utah, rallied behind her, along with her family, doctors, and nurses at Huntsman Cancer Institute at the . Now in remission, Erin is taking every opportunity for adventure.
鈥淚t was the most free and alive I鈥檝e ever felt,鈥 says Erin of her first skydive. She is studying for an associate degree in physical therapy and used to be a track and field athlete. 鈥淚 never thought I鈥檇 run again. I ran a 5K last summer and it鈥檚 a miracle. A part of me was like, 鈥榃ill I ever beat this? Will I ever feel good again?鈥 But I am, and I love it.鈥
In July of 2019, the summer after her second year of college, she experienced pain in her hand. Doctors diagnosed her with stage IV rhabdomyosarcoma, the most common type of soft tissue sarcoma in children. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 when my whole life turned upside down and changed forever,鈥 she says. Her prognosis was so grim that she said her good-byes to family and friends. 鈥淚 thought I was a goner for sure,鈥 Erin says.
Tara Hurst, Erin鈥檚 mother, remembers it well. 鈥淪he was in the best health of her life and had just run the race of her life,鈥 Tara says. 鈥淪he had a little bump on her hand, and it ended up being cancer. It was a total shock.鈥
Over 18 months, Erin received intensive radiation and chemotherapy at Huntsman Cancer Institute. Her experience with her care team impacted her so profoundly that she changed her coursework to physical therapy, wanting to give back. 鈥淚t has made me a more empathetic person. No one鈥檚 life is perfect. I always want to treat people with kindness because you don鈥檛 know what鈥檚 going on in their lives.鈥
Erin says her care team, led by Anna Chalmers, MD, oncologist and investigator at Huntsman Cancer Institute, and assistant professor in the Division of Oncology at the U., and Lyndi Osoro, RN, made all the difference. 鈥淭here was a special spirit there of love and kindness,鈥 Erin says. 鈥淗untsman Cancer Institute helped me see a cancer-free future for myself by the hope they gave me every week I was there.鈥
Tara says through tears, 鈥淪he wasn鈥檛 their patient鈥攕he was their 鈥榩rincess warrior.鈥 They all wore these blue bracelets for Erin. I felt like the nurses were my sisters. They were our family through those 18 months. We relied on them. They were our angels.鈥
Frank Hurst, Erin鈥檚 father, says he has big dreams for their daughter. 鈥淭o marry, to have babies, to grow old and experience joy, to never take another day for granted, and to enjoy every moment鈥攅very sunrise, every sunset鈥攖o live life,鈥 he says.
Erin is looking forward to it. 鈥淲hether that鈥檚 dancing and making a fool of myself in public, I don鈥檛 care. I just want to enjoy it. I have a future. My life is good. I also still have my hand, and I鈥檓 able to use it to help patients, and to play pickleball and basketball with my family and friends.鈥
