'I’m Going to Be Around for You'
UVM Cancer Center specialists give new mom hope during her toughest fight.
When Sage Collins learned she was pregnant with her first child, she was over the moon. Sage and her husband had long dreamed of starting a family, and the time was finally right. Her pregnancy went smoothly, but at times her body felt off.
In May 2024, Sage and her husband welcomed a healthy baby boy, Asher. Soon after his birth, Sage knew something was wrong. “I was so sick I couldn’t even play with him,” she recalls. “I said, ‘This is no way to live.’”
A colonoscopy revealed the unthinkable: stage 4 rectal cancer. At just 30, with a newborn in her arms, Sage faced a diagnosis that felt like a bullet. “I remember saying, ‘I don’t want to die. I can’t die. I am a mom.’”
As a patient at University of Vermont Health - UVM Cancer Center, Sage found strength in her care team, led by Maura Barry, MD, with whom she had an instant connection. “Everyone was so knowledgeable that I felt like I didn’t have to do any of the thinking,” Sage says.
Today, with chemotherapy, radiation and surgery behind her, Sage remains optimistic. “I remember looking at Asher and saying, ‘I am not going to miss you growing up. I'm going to be around for you. You are going to be the reason why I beat this.’”
Sage’s story is a powerful reminder that colorectal cancer is not just an older person’s disease. Rates among young people are climbing, with one in five diagnoses occurring in people younger than 55.
Screening for colorectal cancer starts at 45. Learn more about screening and talk to your doctor about which options are right for you.
Sage's Story: Colorectal Cancer
31-year-old Sage Collins details her experience with colorectal cancer diagnosis and treatment at University of Vermont Cancer Center. "My care team was remarkable. They're so knowledgeable of my disease I felt like I didn't have to do any of the thinking."
