Jenna Vancura, 28, on what it means to live after ending cancer treatment

Jenna and James Vancura
Jenna and James Vancura, standing in the MPR building on Oct. 14, 2014.
Tom Weber / MPR Photo

Jenna Vancura, 28, spent much of her senior year in high school at the Mayo Clinic, after a cancer diagnosis. By the time she was 25, she had already had three bouts of cancer.

After 11 years, Vancura announced on her blog that her body was finally succumbing to the disease:

Jenna Langer
Cancer survivor and activist Jenna Vancura, 25, was treated in the pediatric BMT unit at Mayo Clinic during her bone marrow transplant in May 2011.
Courtesy Jenna Vancura

It's that realization nobody wants to have, but most need to have at some point. My mom thanked my doctors for their honesty; it's hard to come by...

As of now, we're stopping curative care and stepping up palliative care. Sometimes when you keep insisting on fighting, you can't keep living. We're not giving up, but we recognize that my body is begging for mercy. We have to weigh any long-shot treatments against the harm they might do to my quality of life.

Vancura joined The Daily Circuit earlier this month to talk about her hopes for the time she has left.

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