Download Hello, my name is Diane Mulhollam. My husband, Tom and I were

Hello, my name is Diane Mulhollam. My husband, Tom and I
were married at 18 years old and started raising our family
immediately. We raised four wonderful children and kept
ourselves very busy in their lives and activities. We were then
excited to be grandparents that would be able to enjoy the
benefits of being young, healthy and active.
How life can change your dreams. In June of 2009 I was
diagnosed with ocular malignant melanoma during a routine eye
exam. The fear I had was the loss of vision but after further consultation I was dealing with
much more, saving my life. Within two weeks I was at the Mayo Clinic being treated with
plaque radiation in my eye. I was seen every three months and even though I had lost the sight
in my eye, the melanoma had not spread. On January 12, 2012 all of this changed, tests
showed spots in my liver.
This started a new journey for our family. The melanoma spread to my liver, lymph nodes and
soft tissue. Typical chemotherapy drugs do not work for malignant melanoma so they use
drugs that boost your own immune system to fight the cancer cells. I was on two different
drugs and large doses of radiation; however, the progression continued. Currently I am on a
clinical trial which has shown some shrinkage of the tumors and no new growth.
Our family has been so thankful for Relay for Life and all the volunteers that help make this
weekend possible. We have learned that we are not alone in this fight. Through Relay for Life
we have been introduced to new organizations to turn to for help, but most importantly all of
the donations help support clinical trials and gives hope to all people that have been affected
with cancer in their lives in one way or another.