He’s the first cancer survivor to stand atop of the world.
Sean Swarner, who conquered Mt. Everest not to mention all seven of the highest summits in the world, will be the special guest at the Manteca Dental Care’s Oral Cancer Awareness event and complimentary screening on Friday, June 10.
He’ll be at the facility at 1007 S. Main St. from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., speaking on behalf of the Cancer Climber Association.
Swarner is a two-time cancer survivor. He was diagnosed with two deadly, different and unrelated forms of cancer at age 13 and again at 16.
The 41-year-old Colorado man has overcome some astronomical odds.
“Those chances (of surviving) were like winning the lottery four times over,” said Erika Wilson, who is a dental hygienist at MDC for nearly a year.
Swarner will be the keynote speaker at the Manteca event. In particular, he’ll be one hand to help raise money to sponsor a cancer survivor to join the Cancer Climber Association in Africa, Wilson added.
She’ll be joining Swarner and his Cancer Climber Association group on the upcoming climb to Mount Kilimanjaro. Her goal in hiking up the 19,341-foot elevation peak in Tanzania is to raise an Oral Cancer Awareness flag. The message here is to give others hope and strength in the fight to raise awareness while promote early detection.
Donations will also help Wilson on this endeavor in Africa scheduled for later next month.
She, too, has been training for the climb, having already made up Mission Peak in the Bay Area and looking at doing several in Yosemite National Park in the coming weeks – Wilson has all of the proper equipment for the trek, having talked frequently with Swarner during her extensive training.
She’s hoping to inform more folks on oral cancer.
Several tidbits include:
uOral cancer was diagnosed in 48,250 Americans this year alone.
uThose at major risk are tobacco (in all forms) and alcohol users.
uEarly detection can be a life saver.
Part of early detection is the free screening at MDC.
This will be a detailed evaluation of the face. Neck, lips and mouth, using advanced fluorescent technology for screening that should take no more than five minutes, according to Wilson.
Cancer Climber Association is a non-profit organization founded by Swarner, who continues to defy the odds while testing his endurance and inspiring people around the world with his message of healing, hope and triumph.
He’s an endurance athlete and author of the internationally-renowned book, “Keep Climbing: How I Beat Cancer and Reached the Top of the World.”
For more information on Swarner, log on to www.seanswarner.com.
To learn more about Oral Cancer Awareness event and screening, call the Manteca Dental Care at 209.823.9218 or Wilson (erikawilson25@gmail.com) at 408.470.8416.
To contact reporter Vince Rembulat, e-mail vrembulat@mantecabulletin.com.
