Fort Worth runner to celebrate beating breast cancer at Coteown Marathon

FORT WORTH, TX (CBSNewsTexas.com) “With only a few days to go before the Cowtown Marathon, this year the Fort Worth woman plans to cross the finish line to celebrate her victory over cancer.

Kay Harris has always loved competitive running. Over the years, she has accumulated quite an impressive number of medals. However, in 2020, the teacher, wife and mother of two had to suspend the competition.

“I was suddenly diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer,” Harris said. “I wasn’t even 40 yet, so I found it myself. We are a very healthy family. We had never gone through this before with our parents, with my parents, and so we were stunned, devastated and scared.”

A close friend who is also a breast surgeon at Baylor Scott & White All Saints Medical Center in Fort Worth made it easy.

“As soon as she had an abnormal imagination, she called me and said: “Hey, I have an abnormal imagination, now what?” Dr. Vaishali Kent said.

“Of course I trusted her and she made us feel so comfortable, she took our hands and I told everyone she was driving our train,” Harris said.

Dr. Kent gave Harris a care plan, and after six rounds of chemotherapy, 28 rounds of radiation, and a double mastectomy, Harris is now cancer-free.

“I’m just grateful to God, my family and the children who have been by my side all this time,” Harris said. “Prayer, family, friends and just an incredible medical team.”

“I am so proud of how strong she has been throughout this entire process,” Dr. Kent said. “I’m so happy that she can get back to her life.”

Now Harris is lacing up his sneakers, pounding on the pavement. She is preparing to run a half marathon at the Cowtown Marathon this weekend.

“When I cross the finish line, I just know that it will make me feel like the cancer hasn’t gotten the better of me,” she said. “If there is someone watching this who may have just been diagnosed or going through the trenches of fighting cancer…there is another side and you will come back to it and you will get your life back.”

She is living proof.