Living in Hampton at the time, Burchett was referred to a pancreatic clinic in Richmond for additional testing. What she thought would be routine turned into devastating news.

"I'm just thinking this is going to be an easy test and I got the phone call 24 hours later that it was pancreatic cancer," Burchett said.

"I didn't know anything about pancreatic cancer. I really didn't know where my pancreas was located," she said.

Burchett faced aggressive treatment including surgery, four weeks of intensive chemotherapy and daily radiation.

"And that took me out. I lost 70 pounds. I was on a feeding tube," she said. "I wanted to stop and they wouldn't let me stop. They said, 'You got to get through all of this.'"

Eleven years after her diagnosis, Burchett is part of the 13% who survive pancr

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