As part of an Aug. 28, 2019 post for the online version of Montclair State University’s Odyssey, Cecily Lovas detailed some of what she had gone through during her 19th year of life, the one in which she found out she had a cancerous brain tumor.

“While losing all my hair, learning how to use an NG tube, getting a port, and having a G-tube placed weren’t in my plans, the things I’ve endured have taught me way more about myself than I could have imagined,” she wrote.