Roanoke native Annie B. Agee was young, healthy and taking prerequisite courses for medical school in Austin, Texas, when a cancer diagnosis led her to proton therapy treatment.  

“I finally got to a point in my life where I felt like I knew my trajectory,” Annie said. “I knew what I wanted to do. Everything was kind of falling into place.” 

At 25, Annie had run at least a mile every day for more than 1,000 consecutive days, even as she dealt with months of numbness in her back. When an internist urged her to go to the emergency room after an exam, Annie didn't skip her daily mile before heading there. 

Despite feeling otherwise healthy, doctors found a tumor on her spine at the base of her neck. When research could only find a handful of similar instances, the physician referred Annie B. to the cancer center.  

Annie B. was diagnosed with a rare hemangiopericytoma, a type of solitary fibrous tumor. Because the tumor was so close to critical nerves and organs, proton therapy offered the precision needed to target the cancer while minimizing damage to healthy tissue. 

She and her mother stayed at an Airbnb in Houston while Annie received treatment. 

“It was six weeks, five days a week,” Annie said. “You go in, lie flat and the treatment itself takes about two minutes. From the time I got on the table until I was finished, it was probably about 30 minutes.” 

Proton therapy's precision protected Annie's thyroid, the nerves running from her brain through her neck and even her tongue. 

Five years later, Annie is cancer-free. She's married, recently had a baby and is in her fourth year of medical school, living the life she didn't think she could have. 

Now that the Carilion Taubman Cancer Center is being built in her hometown, Annie has peace of mind knowing comprehensive cancer care will be close by as she considers moving her family back to Southwest Virginia. 

“Knowing our community has the resources it needs means people can stay close to home during treatment,” Annie said. “They don't have to travel or find an Airbnb. They can be surrounded by their loved ones, friends and family while going through what is likely one of the hardest experiences of their lives.” 

As the campaign to bring proton therapy to the Carilion Taubman Cancer Center continues, Annie hopes others will have the same opportunity she did. 

“Proton therapy changed my life, and I truly believe I'm here today because of it,” Annie said. “Every donation helps give someone else that same chance and gives families something priceless: more time together. That's a gift you can't put a price on.” 

With the support of donors, more patients in Southwest Virginia will soon have access to the same life-changing treatment Annie received, without leaving home or the people who matter most.