The Virnig Family Patient: Mary Age: 18 Diagnosis: Ganglioneuroblastoma Cancer Length of Stay: 104 days A cancer diagnosis last summer delayed Mary Catherine Virnig's first day of college, but it wasn't going to stop her this year. Despite continuing to battle cancer, starting school this fall was near the top of Mary's priority list. Mary, 19, of Onamia, Minn. entered her first year of school at the University of Wisconsin River Falls in September where she plans to major in animal science to become a large animal veterinarian. "It was important for me to go back to school to have some sort of normalcy in my life," she said. "I wanted to be like the other 19-year-olds and live away from home, have friends my age, and experience life outside of the hospital again." Her battle with ganglioneuroblastoma, a cancer arising from nerve tissue, began in July 2006 when she went in for her college cross county physical exam. When her doctor felt a mass in her pelvis that looked like a large ovarian cyst, she was referred to the University of Minnesota Gynecology Department, where an 11 cm by 11 cm tumor was found. The cancer had spread to the bone marrow in her left hip and femur. In the last year, Mary has had six rounds of chemotherapy, two surgeries, a stem cell transplant, and six weeks of radiation. She will be visiting San Francisco this fall for another radiation treatment and currently takes a pill that matures her neuroblastoma cells. This fall, Mary's move into the dorms in River Falls went on as scheduled. On the CaringBridge site, her father Arden said Mary handed each of her siblings a hand-written letter before they left. "The boys shared theirs and they were beautiful," he wrote. "Mary complimented both of her brothers on how much they have grown up over the last year and how they have helped her especially in the department of snuggling and laughing." Once her parents, Arden and Patti, were gone, Mary had plenty of time to settle into her new surroundings. Like other college students, living in a cramped dorm room was a challenge. "I have about three feet between my bed and the ceiling... I have to do some creative climbing and then army crawl across my bed to lay down," she said. Mary said she now has a special motivation to get to her early classes. "It's hard to get up sometimes but I tell myself that I get to be here and I have had to get up early to go to much worse things than chemistry." Arden said Mary's enthusiasm for school is remarkable. "I do think Mary should go on tour as a motivational speaker for going to school; she is so excited to be going back," he posted on her Web site. During treatment, Mary and her family stayed in the Ronald McDonald House for 108 days. Arden said the House was a place to forge relationships between other patients and families dealing with tough situations. The House "is a safe haven, a place of calm and peace away from the chaos of the unpredictable medical environment," Arden said. "It is a gift of love." Mary's parents had to deal with being on both sides of their daughter's illness, as parents and doctors. "It is hard to define the incredible spectrum of feelings that we went through as doctors, parents, and husband and wife," Arden said. "There were so many times when we tried to be one and not the other."