Dr. Shaunna Burke, 50, has incurable breast cancer – but she didn’t let that stop her from reaching her goals. On May 23, she reached the summit of Mount Everest, and after making it to the top, she shared an important message.
Whenever life gets difficult, or we face challenges along the way, having people to look up to can be incredibly inspiring. One woman who certainly checks every box when it comes to inspiring others with her positive outlook on life and incredible strength is Dr. Shaunna Burke.
The 50-year-old lives in Addingham, England, and was diagnosed with incurable stage 4 breast cancer in 2024. On Saturday, May 23, she successfully climbed the tallest mountain in the world for the second time in her life. The first time was in 2005.
Dr. Shaunna Burke reached the summit of Mount Everest
She shared a video on Instagram updating her followers: “I am officially the first woman to summit Everest with stage IV cancer!,” the caption reads.
“We reached the summit of Everest today,” Burke says in the video. “I can’t believe 21 years later, second time standing on the summit of Everest, this time with stage 4 cancer. For anybody out there struggling with cancer, keep going, keep taking steps forward.”
In an interview with BBC, she shared more details about the journey: “It would be freezing cold, and when you’re in your tent and you’re not moving your body and you’re not getting the blood flowing through your body, it can be very, very, very, very cold.”
Burke also launched a GoFundMe called “Dying To Climb,” where she explained that one of her goals in taking on the challenge was to “inspire others who are facing their own battles – showing that courage, purpose, and hope can exist even in the hardest moments.”
“I want to thrive”
She also hoped to “raise vital funds for Macmillan Cancer Support, whose work has become ‘deeply personal’ to her” and “advance new research into the effects of low oxygen on advanced cancer progression and patient outcomes.”
And she has one clear message for those who followed her journey: “I hope this climb will stand as a message to anyone who feels overwhelmed: you are stronger than you think,” she wrote.
“I will be living with cancer for the rest of my life and it will have to be controlled,” Burke said in a video on her website, according to PEOPLE. “I have no idea where it came from but it was this powerful feeling that just came over me of wanting to live. I don’t want to just survive, I want to thrive. So I am determined, with every fiber of my being, to make that happen.”
What an incredible achievement. We wish Dr. Burke all the best and hope her story continues to inspire others facing challenges of their own!
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