Slay Sarcoma 5K Walk/Run Honors Yardley Resident Who Fought Cancer

YARDLEY, PA —Borough resident Amy Reed was a physician and mother of six who received a cancer diagnosis in October 2013.

She underwent surgery for what her doctors believed were uterine fibroids. Just eight days later, she was diagnosed with leiomyosarcoma, just a year after the birth of her youngest child.

Reed died on May 24, 2017. Before her death, Reed pushed for better standard sarcoma.

That push will be carried on Saturday.

The 9th Annual Slay Sarcoma 5K Run/Walk takes place Saturday at Core Creek Park in Langhorne.

Proceeds raised go entirely toward funding LMS research. So far, $360,000 has been raised with a goal of $1 million.

"While she is no longer here with us, we will continue the courageous fight she started,"organizer Amber Trainer said.

Trainer said the cancer, which can masquerade as a fibroid, is aggressive, and often resistant to common cancer treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation.

Because her surgeon thought she had a simple fibroid, she cut up the cancer inside of Amy using a tool called a morcellator. This spreads the cancer, and for many women significantly worsens their outcomes, Trainer said.

In order to counter the effect of morcellation, Reed underwent a drastic operation called cytoreduction and heated intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC).

She was in the hospital for two weeks, missing Thanksgiving with her children, and developed a blood clot in her lungs. The surgery was followed with chemotherapy.

In the two years that followed, she had multiple recurrences which required surgery and radiation, Trainer said.

During that time, Amy and her husband (Dr. Hooman Noorchashm) fought to end the practice of morcellation, a horrific medical practice that OBGYN's have been doing for over 20 years, Trainer said. She said their campaign received a lot of national and international recognition.