EVIAN-LES-BAINS – Cassandra Kirkland is fighting cancer head on.
At this week’s Evian Championship, Kirkland is selling t-shirts designed with her own logo “F#@* Cancer” to raise money for research to fight the disease she’s currently battling. 25% of the proceeds from shirts sold at the tournament will go to one of their partners, “Le Cancer du Sein, Parlons-en” (breast cancer, let’s talk about it.)
“My goals is to be able to help research go faster,” Kirkland told LPGA.com via email. “Too many people still die of cancer. It is crazy how we do not realize how important it is to help research when you are not touch by this disease, but if everyone does a little effort, we will probably be able to find the treatment that cures all the cancers.”
The two-time winner on the Ladies European Tour hit the gym hard in preparation for the 2015 season, no idea the fight she was about to endure. Just three months into the season, Kirkland knew something was wrong.
“I had some kind of flu, and then I started to cough, and the cough would not go away,” Kirkland said. “I did not treat it, I thought it would go away on its own.”
She continued to play, making the trip in March to Morocco for the Lalla Meryem Cup but she continued to cough through the night and struggled to pick up her ball or place it on a tee.
She was exhausted.
Kirkland made the decision to seek treatment and scans revealed lesions on her lungs. In April, the then 31-year-old Kirkland was diagnosed with lung cancer.
“I did not really realize at the moment what was happening. I even sent text messages to my family to say what was happening, they thought it was a joke,” Kirkland said. “It is crazy that all this time I did not feel sick, and when the doctors announce that you are sick, you feel very ill. I just did not want to listen to my body before and never in one second I thought I had something this bad.”
Kirkland immediately began chemotherapy treatment and said she quickly began to feel stronger. But in March her scans didn’t reflect what she was feeling. The immunotherapy had stopped working, so Kirkland sought additional treatment through a clinical test, which also proved unsuccessful. Scans revealed this summer that her cancer was continuing to spread and she began chemotherapy once again. This time, she was taking it more seriously.
“When I was diagnosed last year I thought it was unlucky, but that I wanted to enjoy life, do whatever I wanted, not change anything,” said Kirkland. “But this year when my doctor told me I had to do chemo again, I decided to change my habits, my nutrition, and od whatever it would take to get better even if not easy. I guess with experience, you start doing things differently.”
Always one full of energy and positivity, Kirkland isn’t letting her diagnosis slow her down. While she doesn’t have the physical strength to play golf, she’s keeping herself busy with her new collection of shirts. A special edition of her t-shirts are being unveiled in her home country this week at the Evian Championship with additional colors and styles available for purchase on her website following the tournament.
“I decided to do these shirts first because I am always looking to do something to keep my mind busy and I cannot practice like I want,” said Kirkland. “I always liked fashion and had already created a logo that I had put on my golf bag, “F#@* Cancer. “ I decided to make these shirts, sell them and donate part of the money to associations against cancer.”
Kirkland will undergo new scans in October to see how her body is taking to the chemotherapy, natural treatments and keto diet she’s on. Until then, she’s remaining focused on research and adjusting to her new way of life.
“My life has changed so much. I went from traveling all over the world, almost all year round to staying home. But I am happy with my life now,” said Kirkland “I have been a competitor for so long. I am used to fighting.”
Kirkland’s t-shirts are available for 39 Euros and will be available on her website following the Evian Championship.
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