Woman visits Mt. Everest summit in honor of her late sister
SAN DIEGO (KUSI) – Marisa Sanchez, Ph.D. student at Sanford Burnham Prebys, successfully completed her journey to Mount Everest base camp in honor of her sister who died from Hodgkin’s lymphoma at age 19.
Sanchez said she raised $7,800 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma society.
Marisa Sanchez had just started college when her 16-year old sister Alessandra started tiring more quickly than usual. After a lump arose on her neck and chest her parents took her to the doctor. A biopsy confirmed their worst fears: it was cancer.
Sadly, her sister lost her battle with cancer in 2012. She was 19. “It was by far the hardest time of my life,” Marisa says. “Even a year ago it was still hard to talk about.”
Related: Student plans to trek Mount Everest in her sister’s honor
