He mistook his earache for an infection: It turns out the cancer had spread throughout his body.

"I had mild pain on one side of my face and discomfort in my ear and jaw. I thought it was just an infection," Michelle said.

But in April of this year, the symptoms returned. While the swelling appeared to have diminished, jaw pain made it difficult to eat, and ear pain returned. Her doctor asked her to come back immediately, and a CT scan revealed a lump in her salivary gland. A biopsy confirmed it was cancerous. “When my doctor used the word ‘lymphoma,’ I thought I was overreacting,” Michelle said. “But this time, I understood the seriousness of the situation.” Michelle soon underwent major surgery to remove the tumor from her neck, the entire gland, and 23 lymph nodes. The surgery took ten hours instead of the planned five. The tumor was attached to the facial nerve, but surgeons managed to save the nerve. They removed 60-70 percent of her parotid gland, the entire submandibular gland, and the lymph nodes in her neck. Plastic surgeons also performed a tissue graft from her thigh to reconstruct her face. “The incision on my thigh was about 25 cm long, and it hurt a lot more than my neck,” Michelle said. She returned home five days after surgery and, with the support of her husband, Jim, began her recovery. THE RARE CANCER AND THE TREATMENT PROCESS After a biopsy and checkups, it was determined that the cancer had not spread to her lymph nodes. However, Michelle will undergo 30 sessions of radiation therapy for glandular cancer. Glandular cancer is an extremely rare form of cancer that affects only 50 to 100 people a year in the US. Michelle is also raising awareness by sharing her process on social media. “I’m still full of hope and positivity. You can’t take my smile away, even if it’s a little crooked right now,” said Willard, who has nearly 120,000 followers on TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram. Michelle’s story once again highlights the importance of early diagnosis and the importance of awareness in the fight against rare cancers.