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Coral Springs Survivor Brings Youth Advocates to Washington to Push for Colorectal Cancer Awareness, Funding

Top from left – Louis Deslouches, Anthony Lawrence, Oscar A Mendoza-Bustillo, Matthew McKillop, Kasia Orzechowska, and Ayden Phillip-Restrepo. Bottom from left – Gabriel Gajdek, Natalia Deslouches, Kai Kawato, and Clinton Bagwandeen Jr.

A Coral Springs mother and cancer survivor is turning her personal fight into a mission to save lives, bringing a group of young advocates to Washington, D.C., to push for increased awareness and federal funding for colorectal cancer research.

Kasia Orzechowska, a Stage 4 young-onset colorectal cancer survivor, traveled to the nation’s capital in March with her family and local students as part of the national advocacy organization Fight Colorectal Cancer’s annual Call-on-Congress event.

Orzechowska’s advocacy stems from her own experience. She was first diagnosed in November 2017 after initially being misdiagnosed with gallbladder stones.

At the time, she was a 40-year-old mother of two young children, ages 2 and 8, and colorectal cancer was far less common among people under 50. When she went in for what she believed would be gallbladder surgery, doctors instead discovered cancer that had already metastasized to her liver.

“I was inoperable at first, and the statistics were not very good,” Orzechowska said.

Following her diagnosis, her gastroenterologist coordinated care at Cleveland Clinic Florida, where she underwent multiple rounds of chemotherapy. The treatments successfully reduced the tumors, allowing surgeons to perform both colon and liver resections. After surgery and additional chemotherapy, she was declared to have no evidence of disease.

However, about a year later, the cancer returned to the other side of her liver. Orzechowska underwent a second liver resection and has now been cancer-free for six years.

“I am one of the lucky ones,” she said. “Only about 16 percent of people with a similar diagnosis live beyond five years.”

Now, Orzechowska channels that experience into advocacy.

“I made advocacy a personal mission after my diagnosis to save lives, and this year we brought a whole new generation of advocates with us,” she said.

During the Washington trip, the group met with congressional offices representing South Florida, including those of U.S. Reps. Jared Moskowitz and Frederica Wilson, and U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, and Ashley Moody. They urged lawmakers to support funding for colorectal cancer research, screening programs, and early detection initiatives.

According to the Cancer Research Institute, colorectal cancer is now the leading cause of cancer deaths among people under 50

Colorectal cancer has become the leading cause of cancer death in U.S. adults under 50 and the second deadliest overall, with cases rising 1.1% annually in younger populations, according to new 2026 data.

Despite its impact, advocates say it is the only top cancer killer without dedicated federal research funding.

Among the advocates were Orzechowska’s children — her 16-year-old son and her 10-year-old daughter — along with several of their peers from Renaissance Charter School at Coral Springs.

Altogether, eight young advocates participated in the trip, gaining firsthand experience in civic engagement and public health advocacy.

For Orzechowska, watching the students speak with lawmakers was especially meaningful.

“It was such an honor to watch these youngsters speak about funding and awareness. It gave me so much hope for the future,” she said.

Beyond Washington, Orzechowska and her son have also focused their efforts locally. The pair successfully requested proclamations recognizing March as Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month in 18 Broward County municipalities, including Coral Springs, Parkland, Margate, Coconut Creek and Deerfield Beach.

Their goal, she said, is to ensure other families do not endure the same challenges.

“We are trying to raise awareness, fight for more resources to save lives, and make sure families like ours don’t go through what we went through,” Orzechowska said.

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Sharon Aron Baron

Editor of Talk Media and writer for Coral Springs Talk. CST was created in 2012 to provide News, Views, and Entertainment for the residents of Coral Springs and the rest of South Florida.