Avery Cooper, now 15, with her mom, Liz, and sister Anabel
Avery Cooper, now 15, with her mom, Liz, and sister Anabel. Though Avery and Anabel are 3 years apart in age and have almost opposite personalities, they are as close as twins, Liz says. Avery was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2018 and has been in remission since May 2019.

Being a Teen After Cancer

Published

archive alertFrom the Duke Cancer Institute archives. Content may be out of date.

In December 2018, at just 13 years old, Avery Cooper had to spend her holidays staying at Duke University Hospital. After a brain tumor diagnosis in June 2018, she went through two surgeries at Duke and proton beam radiation therapy at another center. She endured infections and hydrocephalus (buildup of fluid on the brain).

None of this was normal for a young teen whose main concerns should be soccer games and sleepovers. But that was the reality for Avery. 

After she was done with the surgeries and hospital stays, Avery started chemotherapy.

In the midst of that, she started meeting with Geoffrey Vaughn, LMFT, ATR. Vaughn is a medical family therapist with Duke Cancer Institute and part of Duke’s Teen and Young Adult Oncology (TYAO) program. The program provides teen and young adult cancer patients (ages 15-29) with support and community before, during, and after treatment.

Because of their schedules, Vaughn and Avery had their first meeting in the hospital cafeteria. She was still receiving chemotherapy, and it had upset her stomach. As soon as he sat down, Avery had to turn away to get sick. “Geoff just waited for her,” says Avery’s mom, Liz Cooper. “He took it in stride.”

Avery and Vaughn really began working together after she completed treatment.

“When you leave the last treatment appointment, it feels like you were dropped off on a dark street corner and you don’t know where you are,” Liz says. The flurry of frequent appointments was over. And Avery couldn’t do any of the sports that she loved before, like kickboxing and soccer. “It was a big blow to go from playing soccer to not being able to run at all,” Liz says. “I could be her mom, but I couldn’t fix any of it.”

Vaughn meets with Avery for individual therapy once a week. They have talked about ways she can make friends even though she is homeschooled, for instance. “Avery wouldn’t be as far along as she is today if it weren’t for Geoff,” Liz says. “They had an immediate connection. It just worked.”

A different family therapist also meets periodically with the entire family, including Avery’s sister, Anabel. Though almost 3 years apart in age, the sisters are as close as twins. When Avery had to spend Christmas in the hospital, the family got special permission for Anabel to spend the night there with her. Though so close, the sisters are very different, Liz says. Anabel is outgoing, light-hearted, and an early riser, while Avery is introverted, a daydreamer, and a night owl. Liz calls Anabel the sun, and Avery, the moon.

In May 2019, Avery’s cancer went into remission. Liz Cooper says she is grateful to Avery’s entire neuro-oncology team and psychology team: Daniel Landi, MD; Julianne Rogers, RN, CPN; Sarah Davis, LCSW; and Bridgett Archambault, MSN, CPNP. 

By early 2020, Avery was on an upswing, Liz says. She had taken up swimming and felt optimistic. But the COVID-19 pandemic has made things harder for her. She stopped the swim team because of concerns about COVID-19 risk. And her therapy sessions with Vaughn are by phone now, which has its challenges compared to in-person therapy.

Still, Liz describes Vaughn as “a lifesaver.” And Avery is working with him to make the most of age 15. Avery says about Vaughn: “Geoff helps me feel more normal about my emotions and who I am now, after cancer. He's comforting and calm and helps me work through my feelings in a positive way.”

Written By

Angela Spivey smiles

Angela Spivey

Duke University School of Medicine

Related News

A wrist wearing an activity-tracking watch.
Article

Stopping to Think

In 2022, when Iris Bugbee, MS, CCC-SLP, was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 34, she had a lot to think about besides cancer. Working full time as a speech language pathologist and caring for her then-two-year-old daughter, Mila, occupied her days. She took nearly six weeks off for surgery, but she worked throughout the rest of her treatment, just reducing her hours.Bugbee, who lives in Fuquay Varina, North Carolina, and was treated at Duke Women’s Cancer Care Raleigh, fit radiation appointments in between patients. She works with adults and older people who have speech or swallowing issues. “I would go to work, travel to Raleigh, and then come back and see the rest of my patients,” she said. “I was going through treatment and doing what I could for my patients and then what I could as a parent at home. I didn’t think a whole lot about my own treatment or diagnosis.”One year after her mastectomy, when a nurse called asking if she’d be willing to participate in a clinical trial of a new, structured support program for young adult cancer survivors, Bugbee said yes. She wanted to get stronger physically, and she saw it as a good way to get motivated. She had exercised regularly before surgery but had not been exercising at all since. She had developed cording syndrome (inflammation, scarring, and hardening of the tissue that can happen as a side effect of surgery), and she was having trouble with range of motion in her right arm. Cleaning, picking up her daughter, and even typing at work were challenging. TThe program encouraged her to plan and set goals, to start slowly to regain strength and to go easy on herself. “When I started this program that’s when I began walking and stretching and building off of that,” she said.The sessions also helped Bugbee begin to process all that happened to her. She said that the support group, which was held online, felt less like a mandatory class and more like a chat with her peers. “It was nice to see the perspective of other cancer survivors who are in the middle of this part of their life – raising a family or in the middle of their careers,” she said. “Hearing everyone’s experiences and their challenges made me feel like, ‘Okay, yeah, I’m not the only one.’ The two psychologists who ran the support program were inviting and gentle, and they just made you want to share."The clinical trial was led by Caroline Dorfman, PhD, a clinical psychologist at Duke Cancer Institute. Read more.This article was originally published in the Fall 2024 Breakthroughs. Read more about DCI's breakthrough research and patient care in this biannual magazine.

Duke Cancer Institute Blog
A family and their two dogs smiling on a couch.
Cancer survivor Iris Bugbee with her husband, Greg, daughter Mila, and corgis, Candi and Charli, at her home in Fuquay Varina in 2024. Bugbee participated in a clinical trial aimed at helping young adults battling cancer learn strategies to ease their post-treatment symptom burden through things like mindfulness and physical activity. Photo by Eamon Queeney/Duke University School of Medicine.
Article

Helping Young Adults Move Forward after Cancer

Being diagnosed with cancer and going through treatment isn’t easy for anyone. For people diagnosed as young adults (ages 18-39), the experience comes with some unique challenges.“This is an age of transition,” said Caroline Dorfman, PhD, a clinical psychologist at the Duke Cancer Institute. People in this age group are often in the midst of reaching milestones such as graduation, landing a job, building a friend group, getting married, and having children, she said. “One of the things we hear from our patients,” she said, “is that the cancer diagnosis stops them in their tracks from being able to move forward on life milestones.”Even after treatment ends, life doesn’t suddenly switch back to normal. Physical symptoms like pain and fatigue can linger, and emotional distress is common during the post-treatment period. Multiple follow-up appointments can present financial and logistical difficulties as well as emotional reminders of cancer.“Sometimes they just want the cancer behind them and to get back to doing what matters to them,” Dorfman said. “The trouble is that when they are in the midst of treatment, they are just trying to get through it, and they don’t stop to process the experience.”That emotional processing often happens after the last chemo treatment or radiation session.To support young adults during this vulnerable period, Dorfman has designed a 10-week program that aims to give them the tools they need to navigate physical and emotional symptoms and learn how to successfully manage their new lives as cancer survivors.

Duke Cancer Institute Blog

Related News

A wrist wearing an activity-tracking watch.
Article

Stopping to Think

In 2022, when Iris Bugbee, MS, CCC-SLP, was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 34, she had a lot to think about besides cancer. Working full time as a speech language pathologist and caring for her then-two-year-old daughter, Mila, occupied her days. She took nearly six weeks off for surgery, but she worked throughout the rest of her treatment, just reducing her hours.Bugbee, who lives in Fuquay Varina, North Carolina, and was treated at Duke Women’s Cancer Care Raleigh, fit radiation appointments in between patients. She works with adults and older people who have speech or swallowing issues. “I would go to work, travel to Raleigh, and then come back and see the rest of my patients,” she said. “I was going through treatment and doing what I could for my patients and then what I could as a parent at home. I didn’t think a whole lot about my own treatment or diagnosis.”One year after her mastectomy, when a nurse called asking if she’d be willing to participate in a clinical trial of a new, structured support program for young adult cancer survivors, Bugbee said yes. She wanted to get stronger physically, and she saw it as a good way to get motivated. She had exercised regularly before surgery but had not been exercising at all since. She had developed cording syndrome (inflammation, scarring, and hardening of the tissue that can happen as a side effect of surgery), and she was having trouble with range of motion in her right arm. Cleaning, picking up her daughter, and even typing at work were challenging. TThe program encouraged her to plan and set goals, to start slowly to regain strength and to go easy on herself. “When I started this program that’s when I began walking and stretching and building off of that,” she said.The sessions also helped Bugbee begin to process all that happened to her. She said that the support group, which was held online, felt less like a mandatory class and more like a chat with her peers. “It was nice to see the perspective of other cancer survivors who are in the middle of this part of their life – raising a family or in the middle of their careers,” she said. “Hearing everyone’s experiences and their challenges made me feel like, ‘Okay, yeah, I’m not the only one.’ The two psychologists who ran the support program were inviting and gentle, and they just made you want to share."The clinical trial was led by Caroline Dorfman, PhD, a clinical psychologist at Duke Cancer Institute. Read more.This article was originally published in the Fall 2024 Breakthroughs. Read more about DCI's breakthrough research and patient care in this biannual magazine.

Duke Cancer Institute Blog
A family and their two dogs smiling on a couch.
Cancer survivor Iris Bugbee with her husband, Greg, daughter Mila, and corgis, Candi and Charli, at her home in Fuquay Varina in 2024. Bugbee participated in a clinical trial aimed at helping young adults battling cancer learn strategies to ease their post-treatment symptom burden through things like mindfulness and physical activity. Photo by Eamon Queeney/Duke University School of Medicine.
Article

Helping Young Adults Move Forward after Cancer

Being diagnosed with cancer and going through treatment isn’t easy for anyone. For people diagnosed as young adults (ages 18-39), the experience comes with some unique challenges.“This is an age of transition,” said Caroline Dorfman, PhD, a clinical psychologist at the Duke Cancer Institute. People in this age group are often in the midst of reaching milestones such as graduation, landing a job, building a friend group, getting married, and having children, she said. “One of the things we hear from our patients,” she said, “is that the cancer diagnosis stops them in their tracks from being able to move forward on life milestones.”Even after treatment ends, life doesn’t suddenly switch back to normal. Physical symptoms like pain and fatigue can linger, and emotional distress is common during the post-treatment period. Multiple follow-up appointments can present financial and logistical difficulties as well as emotional reminders of cancer.“Sometimes they just want the cancer behind them and to get back to doing what matters to them,” Dorfman said. “The trouble is that when they are in the midst of treatment, they are just trying to get through it, and they don’t stop to process the experience.”That emotional processing often happens after the last chemo treatment or radiation session.To support young adults during this vulnerable period, Dorfman has designed a 10-week program that aims to give them the tools they need to navigate physical and emotional symptoms and learn how to successfully manage their new lives as cancer survivors.

Duke Cancer Institute Blog
This page was reviewed on 08/27/2020