A Billings dental hygienist spent years caring for patients cleaning teeth, checking gums, relying on the precise sense of touch in her fingertips to do her job.

Today, Jo McGollum is not sure she will ever do that work again. But she says she is grateful to be here at all.

WATCH: Cancer survivor's screening plea

Billings woman diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer becomes advocate for early cancer screening

McGollum, 57, is a stage 4 colon cancer survivor. Her diagnosis came not from dramatic symptoms or a family history of cancer, but from a routine screening test she had put off for years and nearly skipped altogether.

"Actually, I didn't feel like I had any symptoms at all. Basically, if I really had to evaluate it, maybe a little bit of bloating after I ate," McGollum said.

McGollum says she had chalked the bloating up to perimenopause and did not think much of it. It was only at a regular annual checkup that her primary care doctor urged her to get screened.

McGollum agreed to try a Cologuard test a stool study used to detect colorectal cancer in a much less invasive way than a colonoscopy.

"I had no family history. I didn't feel like I had any symptoms," McGollum said. "I promised her that if it was positive I'd get a colonoscopy."

The test came back positive.

McGollum followed through on her promise. On April 11, 2025, she went in for a colonoscopy. She says she was not expecting much.

"The doctor came in after the procedure, and he said, 'Well, we found a little tiny polyp and a great big mass,'" McGollum said. "And then it was like okay. Now what."

She says she went home, sat on her deck, and let herself sit with the life-changing information for a moment.

Then she made a decision.

"After I found out the results of the colonoscopy I went home, and I was a little emotional. Then started thinking about the plan and thought, okay, well, I have to face it," McGollum said.

From that point, things moved fast. The same day as her colonoscopy, she crossed the street for blood work. The following week she had a CT scan. The week after that, an MRI. Surgery was scheduled for May 2, 2025 less than one month after her diagnosis.

Following surgery, McGollums oncologist confirmed the diagnosis: stage 4a colorectal cancer.

The news was momentous.

Ali Peterson, an oncology nurse navigator at the Intermountain Health Cancer Center in Billings, was brought in to guide McGollum through what came next.

"Typically, with a stage 4 diagnosis, it's incurable. But with Jo, we were treating for a curative intent," Peterson said.

Peterson says McGollum's cancer was localized to where the mass was found, meaning it had not spread beyond the immediate area.

That made curative treatment possible...but only if McGollum stayed on a strict timeline.

"It was very important to keep her on track, to keep that timeline on track and not have delays in treatment. So we just needed to go above and beyond with supportive care, whether that was IV fluids or some extra electrolytes or whatever that needed to be to keep her on track for treatment," Peterson said.

Peterson explained that as an oncology nurse navigator, she helps to guide patients from the moment of diagnosis through treatment and into survivorship, making sure nothing falls through the cracks between appointments, procedures and providers.

"There are a lot of steps between diagnosis and treatment and so a navigator kind of makes sure that those things happen the way that they should," Peterson said.

Peterson said McGollum's treatment unfolded in three phases. After recovering from surgery, she had a port placed and began chemotherapy. Her regimen then alternated; medication one week, then a week off to allow her body to process it, then back again.

McGollum completed approximately 18 weeks of chemotherapy. She then underwent five and a half weeks of concurrent chemo-radiation, in which she received radiation while also taking a chemotherapy pill. She finished treatment in the first week of December 2025.

The side effects were significant. Radiation to the pelvic area, Peterson says, can cause intense skin irritation, diarrhea and long-term changes that may require pelvic floor physical therapy particularly in women.

Chemotherapy can also be very hard on the kidneys and liver, requiring constant monitoring of blood work. McGollum says the IV chemotherapy she received left her with peripheral neuropathy numbness and tingling in the hands and feet that can cause permanent nerve damage.

For McGollum, that neuropathy has changed everything about the career she built over decades.

"In the field of dental, you're a caregiver, and we work very closely to sensitive areas in the mouth," McGollum said. "One of those things that's necessary is tactile sense with your fingers. Because of my chemotherapy, I have peripheral neuropathy, and that doesn't allow for me to feel very well when I'm working on somebody."

She says clinical dental hygiene is not something a person can do by sight alone. For now, she does not know if she will return to that work.

"I don't know if I'll go back into clinical practice the way my hands have been feeling. But I'm hoping to kind of retrain my brain and possibly do something in the dental field in the future," McGollum said.

Survivorship has brought other adjustments as well. McGollum describes herself as a foodie, saying she loves trying new restaurants, exploring different cuisines, and experiencing new foods when traveling.

After having part of her colon removed, that relationship with food has fundamentally changed.

"My head is hungry. I have food cravings that I used to enjoy, and a lot of things make me feel yucky or make my stomach hurt," McGollum said.

McGollum says she never knows how food will affect her and must be careful about what and how much she eats. She calls it one of the biggest letdowns of life after treatment but she says she is still working on gaining back her health, less than a year out from finishing chemo and radiation.

McGollum now receives a CT scan every 6 months and comes in every 3 months for blood work and to visit with her oncologist.

She says she cannot officially call herself cancer-free for 5 years, but so far all of her scans have been favorable. She says she tries to stay focused on that.

"If this is as good as it gets, it's better than having cancer," McGollum said.

Her outlook has already reached further than she expected. After she shared her experience, a close friend got a colonoscopy and was found to have cancer. That friend's neighbor then got screened, and cancer was found there as well.

"Because I did it, they were able to face it as well," McGollum said. "They may have not got tested if the story wasn't out. So I think that's really important for people to talk about. Again, the fear of the unknown is, I think, what holds people back the most."

Peterson says that fear is one of the most common reasons people delay screening and one of the most dangerous.

"Going through treatment for cancer is a big inconvenience on your time. So I would recommend just make the time. If it's time for some sort of a cancer screening, just go in and do it," Peterson said.

The CDC now recommends people begin evaluating for colorectal cancer at age 45, an age that dropped from previous recommendations to start round 50 years old.

Peterson says warning signs include rectal bleeding, changes in bowel habits, abdominal bloating, fullness and nausea.

She adds that symptoms like bloating after eating are often vague and nonspecific and easily mistaken for something else, as McGollum's case shows. Peterson says any change from a person's normal should prompt a visit to a doctor.

"If something is out of the ordinary, if abdominal bloating or nausea or changes in bowel habits comes on and it's not somebody's norm, just go get it checked out. Just go see your doctor," Peterson said.

She says Cologuard has helped lower the barrier to early detection by offering a less intimidating first step than a colonoscopy.

"It's much less invasive to give a stool sample than to go for a colonoscopyso, we're always striving to make things easier. We know that in the medical field, nobody wants to come and do the tests that we want them to do," Peterson said.

McGollum's message to anyone putting off a screening is direct.

"Don't be afraid to seek out medical advice and be tested. Take control of your own health," McGollum said.

This Saturday, McGollum will join other survivors, caregivers and community members at the Relay for Life cancer fundraiser in downtown Billings. The event kicks off at 5 p.m. with the National Anthem performed by Leah Bayless.

Stephanie Bond, volunteer co-chair for the event, says the Relay for Life has evolved significantly over the years, moving from West High School to the Metro and now to downtown Billings for the second consecutive year.

"Downtown is coming alive in Billings, and we really wanted to support that," Bond said. "Last year was the first year there. It was a great success. And so we said, yes, let's do it again this year."<...

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