Gloria Borges (1981-2014)

[MChambers]

Wanted to update this thread, as Gloria's surgery is coming up soon.

But before she takes on cancer once more, she took in a Duke game last night.



You all should know that Coach K has been e-mailing Gloria regularly, offering support and strength, for a few months now.

We have the best coach in the country. And he's a much better man.

Please keep Gloria in your thoughts as she prepares to take down cancer once and for all, and I'd encourage you to send some love her way accordingly.

We're all rooting hard for her. Thanks for posting this.

[blazindw]

Wanted to send an update for those of you who are not keeping track of Gloria's blog...

Gloria will undergo her big surgery tomorrow here in DC that will hopefully rid her of all the cancer left in her body. Of course, she's in great spirits and ready to go. Her friends have been leaving messages of support on her wall, but I know that she would appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers as she sets out to beat cancer tomorrow.

http://www.wunderglo.com/blog/2011/2...medium=twitter

That's her latest post. Feel free to leave words of encouragement in the comments. Or, for those of you on Twitter, you can message her at @wunderglo.

Let's go Gloria!

[OZZIE4DUKE]

Vibes for a successful surgery!
}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}

[Mike Corey]

I am elated to report that Gloria made it through surgery, and is resting in ICU with her husband by her side.

Her husband notes:

"Sitting in the ICU next to a beautiful and CANCER-FREE WunderGlo. Nowhere else in the world I'd rather be. "

[MChambers]

I am elated to report that Gloria made it through surgery, and is resting in ICU with her husband by her side.

Her husband notes:

"Sitting in the ICU next to a beautiful and CANCER-FREE WunderGlo. Nowhere else in the world I'd rather be. "

Hard as it is to believe, this is more important than the Toe! Hope the recovery and rehab goes well.

[ricks68]

Here's a wish hoping for a speedy cancer-free, recovery!

ricks

[Indoor66]

I am pulling for her to be completely well. As a cancer survivor myself I can appreciate the elation the family must be feeling. More power to you.

[ChicagoCrazy84]

Great news! I was actually thinking about this the other day, but I couldn't find the thread so this is great. So happy for Gloria and her husband!

[NYC Duke Fan]

I am also a cancer survivor and that was certainly good news about Gloria. Hope we can hear some good news about Mkline's 7 year old nephew soon. Whoever wrote about Dr. Friedman is right on. There are two great Dr. Friedmans at Duke, The Surgeon, Allan Friedman and Henry Friedman the oncologist, who cured my dear friend when everyone else gave up hope.

The stories about Gloria and Mkline's nephew certainly puts things in perspective don't they. It makes winning or losing basketball games quite unimportant.

[gep]

I am elated to report that Gloria made it through surgery, and is resting in ICU with her husband by her side.

Her husband notes:

"Sitting in the ICU next to a beautiful and CANCER-FREE WunderGlo. Nowhere else in the world I'd rather be. "

Hard as it is to believe, this is more important than the Toe! Hope the recovery and rehab goes well.

I don't think it's hard to believe at all. CANCER-FREE is simply amazing. GO WONDERGLO!!!

[Mike Corey]

An update on the amazing Gloria Borges.

She's working on a book about her triumph over cancer (she's working on getting an agent now), and she's put together a colon cancer fundraiser in the form of a 3-on-3 basketball tournament and silent auction on September 24 in Los Angeles.

If you can, I strongly encourage you to support this fund raiser in any way you can.

Coach K has contributed to the silent auction, as have Stuart Scott of ESPN and Tyson Chandler.

[Mike Corey]

Another update about Gloria:

One more surgery has become necessitated to clear out some extraneous cancer that has stubbornly stuck around. Gloria goes into surgery in an hour or so, but wanted to share her pre-surgery thoughts with all of you.

I hope you'll join me in keeping Gloria and her family in your thoughts and/or prayers.

[jv001]

Another update about Gloria:

One more surgery has become necessitated to clear out some extraneous cancer that has stubbornly stuck around. Gloria goes into surgery in an hour or so, but wanted to share her pre-surgery thoughts with all of you.

I hope you'll join me in keeping Gloria and her family in your thoughts and/or prayers.

Gloria will be in my prayers as she continues her courageous fight against a terrible disease. Thank you for being a good friend to her. We could all take a lesson from you. GoDuke and Go Gloria!

[DukieInKansas]

Thank you for the update. For some reason she popped into my head a few days ago and I was wondering how she was doing. Renewed prayers for her and the surgery team.

[Mike Corey]

Reviving an old thread to share some exciting news: Since the original post, Gloria's life has changed in countless ways. But through it all, and though she is currently going through several rounds of radiation, she has not stopped fighting this damn disease through balancing out her normal life (she's an attorney at a prestigious LA law firm) with her cancer-fighting life.

Some time ago, she launched a foundation to fight colon cancer. She's written a book. She's hosted fundraisers across the country.

And this morning, she announced her most audacious goal yet: The Wunder Project, an effort to raise $250 million with the explicit goal of curing colon cancer.



Coach K and several Blue Devils appear in the video. As they have since the beginning, the Duke basketball family has been of tremendous support to Gloria and to Gloria's family.

~

A few days ago, Gloria wrote about love of all things on her blog.

But that’s only from the physical standpoint, and that’s a small part of what this cancer-killing experience has been about. The physical stuff is tough and, yes, I have to go it alone, but it’s a fraction of what this entire thing has been about. My fight with cancer has been about learning how to take care of myself, learning how to value every second of life, and making sure that whatever I’m doing, my mind and spirit are focused and positive so they can help my body perform as well as possible. It has been about emotional and spiritual stability and a sense of peace that permeates every moment of my life – knowing that yes, I will be okay. No matter what I have to endure and how long it takes, I will be okay. Knowing that I AM okay in this very moment. And that’s where love comes in.

To feel the love of my family and friends, my colleagues and my medical team is an incredible thing, and something that fills my heart and makes me strong and ready to conquer the world. To be in London or New York City and to experience the places that fascinate me fills me with wonder and inspires me to seek even more joy from life. To cheer on my Duke Blue Devils or sing along to my favorite music or swish a three pointer fortifies my spirit and reminds me that so many things in life make me truly happy. And in those moments, when I am surrounded by love and loving so many things, I know that I could never be alone. I could never be lonely. And I don’t go through anything alone.

If you can, please take a moment to either send Gloria an encouraging word or a donation or both, and help to further her labor of love to end this damn disease for good.

[aro24]

Glad to see this. Back in November I lost one of my best friends from childhood to colon cancer, 1 week prior to his 35th birthday. He was a fellow Duke fanatic and a longtime follower of these boards. A short time after his death, his family received an autoraphed basketball from Coach K.
Just a small note to put out how this community of Duke fans and the team/program can make a difference.

Here's hoping we find a way to beat this disease some day.

ARo24

[Mike Corey]

Here's a post from DukeBluePlanet:

A few months ago, Duke grad, friend and inspiration Gloria Borges reached out to us about assisting with a video project for her Wunderglo Foundation. Gloria is one of the most driven, dedicated and tough human beings alive, so the expectations for her new project were high. Yet, she has managed to out-do herself with the launch of the Wunder Project, which includes a new website, awesome video (see below) and absolutely last but not least, a goal of raising $250 million and curing colon cancer. Not $25,000 or $250,000… $250 MILLION for the Wunder Project. Gloria is a true powerhouse.

[Tripping William]

As Duke alum and fan who (a) never really knew my paternal grandfather because he was taken, in 1970, by colon cancer at age 70; (b) saw my maternal grandfather taken, in 1995, by lymphoma at age 70 (while I was in law school at Duke); (c) saw my father taken, in 2007, by late-detected prostate cancer at age 62, after a decade of fighting it; and (d) is 3.5 years removed from my own prostate cancer surgery, in 2009 at age 40 (thank heavens for early detection!), I applaud Gloria's noble & tireless efforts to hasten the demise of this dreaded disease.

Cancer, your time is up!

[Mike Corey]

Yesterday marked the third anniversary of Gloria's diagnosis.

Via her Facebook page:

Three years ago today, I was diagnosed with Stage IV colon cancer. I was told that I'd live a year...maybe two years at the most. Over the last three years, I have defied that prediction and many others. I have defied death. I have embarrassed cancer. And I'll keep doing it until this is all over. Because at the end of this boxing match with cancer, I will be the one left standing. For reaching this milestone, I thank God, my doctors (especially HJL and Sugarbaker), my family, my friends, and myself. They never give up on me and, most importantly, I never give up on me. Today is a great day.

It's worth noting that she has been fighting off a pulmonary embolism in her lung, and that last week, she underwent her 58th round of chemotherapy.

If you want to drop her a line of encouragement, or make a donation to the foundation she started to fight colon cancer, you can do so here.

[DukeAlumBS]

Had to sign it to just post here. Thank you for a great story to read. She has a bad cancer to boot my thoughts to her and prayers. Thank you again. Nice day my friends, Jimmy