Sheryl Middleton is a kind person who always greets you with a smile. A great cook and baker, her famous brownies and treats were always a highlight on long bus rides to high school football games and band and winter guard competitions with the parents.

Her work family at Toms River HS East was the luckiest because they had her cheesecake! Sheryl was always eager to help wherever she could. She has a great sense of humor and was at times, a prankster in the office.

Sheryl is a niece, a sister, a cousin, and a friend. Her most important role is being our mom.

My Mom is the strongest person I know. A divorced single mom, she raised me and my sister in a loving home and was an amazing, strong role model.

When her mother got very sick with cancer, my mom took her in, and she and my aunt took care of her in our home. In addition to working full-time, she worked to take care of us and my grandmother. And now, it’s her turn.

Sheryl’s Story:

Sheryl’s journey with metastatic colon cancer began in January 2023. When her doctor sent her to the emergency room for testing, it was discovered that her hemoglobin was dangerously low.

After treatment, a colonoscopy showed that she had a large tumor in her colon. She had a colon resection and due to complications, required two additional surgeries which resulted in her being fitted with a colostomy.

A scan showed that she also had two small masses in her liver. My mom finally recovered enough to begin her chemotherapy in May 2023. Her treatment, however, was paused in August and her case was transferred to Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK) at their location in Middletown.

They sent her for surgery in NYC the following month. The MSK surgeon removed a portion of her liver and performed an ablation to remove the masses on her liver. They also inserted a hepatic pump that would be used to inject a high dose chemotherapy directly to the liver, which would hopefully prevent the cancer from returning to that site.

Continue reading: Sheryl’s Fight Against Cancer