As a four-month-old, doctors discovered a cancerous mass between her liver and gall bladder. They diagnosed Merritt with hepatoblastoma. At the time, this rare condition was one of only about ten documented pediatric cases ever, she said.
Merritt is considered cured and healthy now, and she is able to focus on helping to raise money for — and awareness about — other children with cancer, but not before she spent more than a dozen years of her childhood recovering from the disease.
Getting better
A few days after the diagnosis, pediatric surgeons near the Swallows' home in Allentown removed a tumor and part of Merritt's liver. Within a few weeks, Merritt's parents started driving her to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) for chemotherapy.
Merritt's mother, Celia Swallow, stopped working to travel back and forth every three days for treatments.
"It was a big strain, but I was young, I was 24," Celia said. Merritt was their first child, and Celia said she was willing to do anything to ensure her daughter's recovery.
Merritt lost what hair she had as an infant during the chemotherapy. By age two, she was only about 17 pounds. Nonetheless, Celia said Merritt benefited from the advances in experimental treatment being offered at CHOP beginning in the late 1970s and early '80s.
Paying for those regular outpatient procedures in Philadelphia was a struggle at times, because the Swallows' health insurance didn't cover them.
Merritt's family knew then about the Four Diamonds Fund and the Hershey Medical Center, but CHOP was more convenient to the eastern part of the state.
Merritt and her mother said that their nearby church and extended family were very supportive with the medical bills. Other local branches of the Kiwanis Club, Lions Club and Ronald McDonald House chipped in with fund-raisers, too.
The chemotherapy was over by the time Merritt turned 5. Doctors said her cancer was in remission. After another five years, she was placed in a state of maintenance.
"I was seeing my surgeon and my doctors until I was 13, and then they were like, 'OK, you're cured. We don't need to see you again,' " she said. "It was kind of sad because it was something that I was kind of used to. It was just something I grew up with."
Giving back
Based on her own family's experience, Merritt knows that combating cancer in children is more than a mere medical pursuit.
"So many people . . . never know the fact that when your kid's just been diagnosed with something like that, it's not just the parents — your entire family is affected, the way you live your life," she said.
Creating "a sense of normalcy" is one of the goals Merritt admires about the Four Diamonds Fund.
"Other kids get to go to the sandbox . . . or the playground; kids with cancer get to go to the hospital," she said.
When she visited the Hershey Medical Center, Merritt was glad to see the play areas and friendly environment created for children undergoing treatment there.
"I definitely didn't have that."
When she came to Penn State and learned about the dance marathon, she realized how she could help other kids who are going through the same struggles as she did. She said to herself, "This needs to be my life."
She rushed Theta Kappa Pi sorority in the fall of her sophomore year.
"The only way I would be this involved (in Thon) is through them," Merritt said.
Opening up
It wasn't until last year's preparations for Thon 2000 that many of Merritt's fellow sorority members found out about her history. Some of them asked her why she was so dedicated to the cause.
She showed them her scar and told them the truth: There wasn't any magic accident.
"I didn't wear a bikini till I was 18," she said. "It's a hefty scar. When you're 13 and self-conscious, you don't go flaunting it."
These days, she doesn't mind lifting up her shirt halfway to show the faded line that curves around her right side.
Still, Merritt isn't sure too many people know about her cancer at Penn State.
When she took a break from her hectic week on Tuesday, she said she was afraid even her Thon dancing partner, Doston Kish of Zeta Psi fraternity, 225 E. Foster Ave, was unaware of what happened.
"I was actually aware of Merritt's history," Doston (junior-turfgrass science) said. "I never brought it up in conversation with her because I figured . . . if she wanted to talk about it, she would tell me."
Doston said he's thankful for sharing in Merritt's enthusiasm for the event, since they met at the beginning of last semester.
"I was kind of clueless as to what Thon entailed . . . because of the fact that my organization had never done Thon before, at least not in the three years that I have been a member," he said.
Looking forward
As this weekend approaches, Merritt hoped to take it easy — "no stress . . . study a little bit . . . drink water . . . get a little light exercise in." Some of those plans went awry, when she saw on her schedule two exams, two lab reports and three homework assignments.
Tuesday afternoon, she said her goal was to go to bed before midnight yesterday, which happened to be her 21st birthday. However, most celebrations will have to be postponed until next week.
"Hip, hip, hooray — no bar tour for me," Merritt said. "I have to rest up for Thon."
Her parents intend to spend the weekend at Penn State and Celia said she was bringing a surprise for her birthday, too.
Merritt said her parents might find it a little hard to come to Thon, while revisiting their memories of her childhood sickness.
"This is really hard to go back to," Merritt said. "They haven't experienced it in (many) years. They were there every step of the way."
The back of the shirt Merritt is wearing for the 48 hours will say "Dancing for Liz" in honor of the young girl her sorority is sponsoring.
Unfortunately, Merritt didn't get a chance to meet Elizabeth because of last minute medical problems with her cancer.
The girl's family doesn't plan to visit Rec Hall this weekend, but Merritt anticipates seeing her sometime after the dance marathon is over.
"I've never met her and I want her to know my face," she said. "Cancer's a lonely thing. Every form of it is different. Nobody responds to the same exact treatment. It's really lonely until you talk to other people that have been through the same thing."
Most of all, Merritt said she wants to assure today's ailing children: "You're not alone."
An update on Merritt's Thon 2001 experience will appear in Monday's issue of The Daily Collegian.
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