Editor's note: Honorary survivors for this year's American Cancer Society Relay For Life of Black Hawk County are Aaron Buzza, Dave Hoth, Loraine Atkins and Hunter Peterson.

WATERLOO - Aaron Buzza, 30, is a cancer survivor

He's constantly on the go - at gatherings, meetings and events - as director of the Waterloo Convention and Visitors Bureau. He and his wife, Crystal, adopted a child last year. A sedentary lifestyle, he said, "kinda bores me."

Cancer may have slowed him down, but only a little. In August 2007, Buzza was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, an incurable but treatable cancer. He was 28.

He underwent radiation and surgery to remove tumors from his back, followed by oral chemotherapy and a stem cell transplant. Buzza responded well to the transplant and in February, celebrated his one-year transplant anniversary. Now he takes a lower-dose oral chemotherapy drug for maintenance.

"I was having lower back pain and thought it was a disk issue. An MRI found lesions in my lower back. It was a confusing three weeks or so to figure out specifically what it was. When I got the call from the doctor and he said tumor and lesions, I've watched enough TV to know certain words are bad to hear. I couldn't ignore it," Buzza recalled.

Although he began radiation and used crutches to get around because doctors were concerned about weakness in his back, Buzza refused to let his battle with cancer impact his daily life. "It really didn't because I figured it didn't have to," he said.

After surgery, he built up his strength, followed by the stem cell transplant.

"There are days now - multiple days in a row - that other than taking that pill, I don't think twice about cancer. More than anything, if I get back pain, if I lift something in the wrong way or sit in an uncomfortable chair for too long, I'm reminded by the 8-inch scar, pins and rods in my back."

His experience has made him deeply appreciative about what he's achieved and been given in his life.

"The threat of recurrence is always going to be there. I can't let it defeat me or slow me down or change who I am. For me, it's about having a good perspective."

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CEDAR FALLS - Hunter Peterson is a cancer survivor.

And he proves the adage that kids are resilient.

On the final day of school last year, Amy Peterson walked down to school to greet her son and walk him home. The school nurse hurried out and asked her, "How long has Hunter had the lump on his neck?" Amy was surprised. "What lump? He didn't have it when he went to school this morning."

But there it was - a large knot protruding from the 6-year-old's neck. Alarmed, Amy hurried home with Hunter and called the family doctor. That afternoon, lab work and scans were done and Amy knew the news wouldn't be good.

"I just had a feeling. He'd never been sick a day. He was in perfect health, yet here we were," she recalled.

Hunter was sent to Iowa City's University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics for a needle biopsy and extensive testing.

The diagnosis was Burkitt lymphoma, a rare and aggressive cancer. He underwent surgery and began chemotherapy.

"It wasn't the start of summer vacation that we envisioned," Amy said. But with the resilience of youth, Hunter was often outdoors on his pogo stick not long after treatments.

"I was really scared before we started treatment and then when I was in the hospital, I wasn't that scared. I wasn't really sick at all. There were a couple of days I didn't want to come out of my room, but then we took lots of walks. We made a couple of friends we really like, neighbors across the hall. We liked to peek in there and say 'hi.' It's nice to know the other kids," said Hunter, who is almost 7.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation made it possible for the Hansen Elementary School first-grader to visit Disney World, Universal Studios and Sea World in Florida, which Hunter deemed "lots of fun." He also appreciates the love and support he got from his mom and dad, Bruce.

He completed chemotherapy in September, and periodically must undergo scans.

His brothers, 11-year-old twins Dillon and Justin, handled Hunter's illness just fine, Amy said.

"They were worried about him, but they spent a lot of time with friends and their grandma, and that was OK."

The Petersons plan to participate in the Relay for Life fundraiser.

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WATERLOO - Dave Hoth is a cancer survivor.

Hoth, a production manager at Bertch Cabinets, ignored a lump on his neck for eight weeks.

"I tried to convince myself it would go away. Then my wife noticed it. I hadn't been to a doctor in 20 years and she immediately made me an appointment. The doctor looked at it, ordered a scan and told me it looked like cancer," said Hoth, 40.

He was sent to Dr. David Congdon, who biopsied the lump and diagnosed squamous cell carcinoma of the tonsil - Stage 4, Hoth said, "as high as you can go." Congdon immediately sent Hoth to see a surgeon at Mayo Clinic in Rochester. There he underwent nine hours of surgery to remove the tumor, followed by eight days of recovery. A month later he began seven weeks of chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

"Chemo on Mondays, radiation five days a week, 16 minutes at a time. They'd removed my tonsils, the jugular vein, muscle in my shoulder and took over 100 lymphnodes. A robot did some of the work," he marveled. "And the surgeon did everything and the kitchen sink to save my life."

That was a year ago and Hoth, who recently returned from a follow-up screening, said he's "cancer-free" and will be screened every three months for two years.

He recalled how frantic his wife and parents felt at the diagnosis, and admitted, "It was very frightening, but the doctors at Rochester know their stuff. They were very blunt, straightforward and didn't pull any punches."

Hoth couldn't speak or eat solid foods for months, and subsisted on special nutritional shakes. He lost 86 pounds. His mouth was full of painful sores and he was on a litany of powerful pain drugs.

"At the very end, getting off those pain killers, I had to go through withdrawal, and sometimes I think that was the worst part."

More than 41,00 Americans are diagnosed with oral cancer each year, according to the Oral Cancer Foundation, and about 90 percent are squamous cell carcinomas. It is hard to discover or diagnose because in its early stages does not produce pain or symptoms a patient might recognize.

"It's a tough cancer and treatment is brutal," Hoth acknowledges. "People need to be more aware of oral cancers, and I'll do anything the American Cancer Society wants me to do to promote awareness."

He said the experience has made him a stronger, better person.

"It puts a lot of things into perspective. I pray every day. My wife was my caregiver when I was bedridden. It was hard, but it's made our relationship stronger. It really gave me an appreciation for my employer, who was very patient through this whole thing.

"It's all in your attitude. I never thought about dying. I thought about fighting. I took it one day at a time."

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EVANSDALE - Loraine Atkin is a cancer survivor.

She was 39, the mother of six boys, the oldest was 15 and the youngest was 4. She'd gone for her regular Pap test and the results showed an irregularity. Another three months, another Pap test and another irregular result meant a trip to the hospital, a biopsy and the diagnosis: cervical cancer.

That was 41 years ago.

"They didn't have chemotherapy, radiation or any of those kinds of treatments, really. So I had to have a hysterectomy," said Atkin. "Back when I had cancer, it was something no one talked about. It was all hush-hush, and people treated you like it was contagious. People told me not to talk about it, and I said, 'Oh, yes, you do,' and encouraged my sister-in-law and others to go have Pap tests and not put it off."

She recalled Schoitz Hospital allowed no visitors on Sundays, but her physician arranged for her boys to visit because they were so worried.

Since then, Atkin was active in raising funds for the American Cancer Society. She went door-to-door seeking donations in her neighborhood and local businesses, and for the past 10 or 11 years has participated in the ACS's Relay for Life.

"I was lucky back then. I want people to know how important it is to get check-ups and find things early," she said.

Contact Melody Parker at (319) 291-1429 or melody.parker@wcfcourier.com.