Mary Diacont and Margaret Vido

Story: "We started coming to Call-on Congress after Courtney (Mary’s daughter, Margaret’s sister) lost her two-year fight with colon cancer. Courtney was diagnosed with stage IV cancer at age 16 after having vague symptoms for a year. Because of her age, lack of specific symptoms, and lack of family history; her doctors did not investigate the possibility of colorectal cancer.

"The one positive we have taken away from all of this is that it has led to so many others we know getting screened earlier, preventing them from going through the same situation as Courtney."

Advice: "You know your own body. If you think or feel that something is off, keep investigating. Sometimes you really need to push to advocate for yourself or your loved ones."