Single Utah County mother of three faces cancer for a 3rd time


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LINDON — Rob Holt pushing his daughter on the swings were some of the last recorded moments of the family together. They were on a dream vacation to Hawaii. Rob had only months to live.

"These are pictures we took after he was diagnosed, after his surgery," said Valerie Holt, Rob's wife. "We wanted to make sure we had some last family pictures together."

It wasn't the first time Valerie Holt had faced cancer. Through surgeries and chemotherapy, she beat ovarian cancer when she was 12.

Two years ago, Rob Holt had headaches, nausea and vision problems. Doctors found a mass: glioblastoma — brain cancer. "His career was over just like that," Valerie Holt said. Rob had been practicing (medicine) in Nevada for just six months. "To be told that it's over, everything you've worked for is gone, and he's going to be gone soon, too. Your whole life as you imagined it- it's over. Every day, we'd lose a little bit of him."

Valerie Holt says she misses her late husband's strength. "He was the strong one," she said.

Now, Valerie and her girls hoped for renewal. "You can either accept that or you can go on angry and bitter," she said. "Or you can accept this new path and see what can come of it."

Instead, an unwelcome visitor came for a third time. At a routine check-up, her gynecologist felt a lump.

"It was some hard news to swallow, especially being it hadn't even been a year since my husband passed away," Holt said. "I had to explain my situation. 'I'm a single parent now and I need to be here for my kids.'"

Holt had seven small tumors in her right breast.

Valerie Holt's prognosis is good because her doctor caught it so early. Holt relies on a deep reservoir of strength and support. (KSL TV)
Valerie Holt's prognosis is good because her doctor caught it so early. Holt relies on a deep reservoir of strength and support. (KSL TV)

On April 26, she had a double mastectomy with reconstruction. "I'm going to wake up looking different and feeling different; that's the hard part. That's the nervous, scared part," Holt said before the surgery.

As surgeons prepared the operating room, Rob was on her mind. "I can't help but think that he's going to be in there today, guiding those doctors," Holt recalled.

"She is one tough kid," said Holt's surgeon, Dr. Jennifer Tittensor of Intermountain Healthcare. "Look at everything she's been through in her life, and she's facing this full on, she's confident."

Holt's prognosis is good because her doctor caught it so early. Holt relies on a deep reservoir of strength and support. "Mostly from those around me," Holt said. "My family and friends are lifting me up right now, and of course, God, too."

She hopes her courage will inspire others, especially the three little girls who call her mom. "My plan is to be around for them for a really long time," she said.

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Heather Simonsen

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