In 2014, Josh Smith was a recent Central Connecticut State University graduate looking forward to starting his career in Marketing. As a young man with an image of picture-perfect health, Josh would be dealt one of life’s most challenging hands: cancer.
As an avid basketball player, Josh was regularly on the court playing with friends. This would be where Josh first felt something was wrong. He developed pain in his knee and would feel fatigued, even after just a few minutes of playing. While everyone had originally hoped these were just the effects of arthritis, Josh’s physician performed a few scans along with a biopsy and soon after delivered the devastating diagnosis of Osteosarcoma to him and his family. Osteosarcoma is the most common type of bone cancer, often affecting children and young adults.
Josh was given one of the most intense treatments in oncology. Surgeons worked to remove his entire femur and knee, with a titanium rod taking their place. A vast amount of blood was needed to get Josh through the 12+ hour surgery. He then received 10 rounds of chemotherapy in the hopes of securing remission.
“I was no longer planning for the future; I was now living in 3-month intervals.”
Those hopes would become a reality, but after a year of remission, Josh received more devastating news. His cancer was metastatic and now showed in his lungs. After all the physical pain endured, a second diagnosis served as sharp emotional pain for Josh and his family.
Instead of letting this consume him, Josh channeled his ability to stay positive. Under the toughest of circumstances, there was one word that would define the following year of his journey: INFINITE. A word that could be used in so many ways and found meaning in Josh’s life and his loved ones.
“Even if I wasn’t going to make it, who I was and my spirit would.”
After a second year of fighting, Josh, alongside his support community, would overcome the odds yet again. Today Josh celebrates 4 years in remission and supports many community organizations in their fight against Osteosarcoma.