Team Teal Advocate: ‘Cycling is magical … frees me from the hustle and bustle of the world, provides me gratitude for life’

What does it take to be inspired? For Meredith R. Mitstifer and Tom Dixon, it’s about helping people in need through cycling and, well, their own inspiration.

Last year, the husband and wife cheered on cyclists in El Tour de Tucson, including those who they had a stake in the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition (NOCC) TEAM TEAL.

“My house was filled with my TEAM TEAL family and we cheered on team members from the side lines,” Meredith said. “The weekend (of El Tour) was filled with laughter, love and this amazing team spirit which of course led us to start discussing ‘what is next’.”

The “what next” was a ride in New York City and now El Tour de Tucson in November. They will be riding in the 62-miler.

“I bought a Peloton, started training and shared accountability with my TEAM TEAL family,” she said. “In May 2024, I along with my TEAM TEAL family, successfully completed that ride (in New York)”

Now, she admits to being “addicted” to cycling.

And, well, so is Tom, who cheered her and the team on. El Tour is now the next goal.

“We discussed purchasing new bikes and taking advantage of the wonderful loop resource here in Tucson,” she said. “Together we learned how to cycle longer distances, and agreed we would sign up for the metric century for El Tour along with other members of my TEAM TEAL family.”

Tom was easily sold on the idea, given the “atmosphere surrounding the riders and how much they seemed to enjoy the race. I wondered how I would be able to ride 100k in El Tour, but willing to accept the challenge.”

There’s more to it than just that. Tom is a supportive husband to Meredith, who was diagnosed with ovarian cancer more than two decades ago.

“Inspired by my wife, an ovarian cancer survivor, who at 51, climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, completed the TD5 Boro Bike (in New York) race, and wanted to ride in El Tour de Tucson in our hometown this year, I couldn’t say ‘no,’” he said. “Here I am at age 49 and have decided to ride in my first El Tour de Tucson.”

Meredith is now the Board Chair for the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition. It’s important to her and important to him to be out there.

She was diagnosed with clear cell ovarian cancer at the age of 30, while four months pregnant. Clear cell is a rare subtype of ovarian cancer and accounts for 6% of ovarian cancers. Individuals with clear cell often experience drug resistance and a poorer prognosis, she said.

“As you can imagine this type of diagnosis rocked me to my very core,” Meredith said. “I had to make difficult choices, as well as risky ones at that time 21 years ago when little was known.”

She decided to hold off on treatment until after she gave birth to her son who is now 21 and a senior at the University of Arizona.

“I completed a year of chemotherapy and additional surgeries after my son was born,” she said. “There is not a day that goes by that I am not grateful to be living and have no evidence of disease. There is no cure and there is no screening tool for ovarian cancer.”

She added: “Today – frontline treatment remains the same as I had 21 years ago. Advocacy and education remain our only prevention tool for this disease. I knew if I lived, my job would be to advocate for awareness, share my story for hope and demand more research and support for women and families affected by this disease. I am proud to serve and volunteer as the Chairman of the Board of Directors for the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition and support their mission in any way I can. I see first-hand how their resources and programs have a positive impact on the lives of my TEAL sisters nationwide.”

They help through advocacy and through TEAM TEAL, which they will represent in November. El Tour gave them the inspiration to make it all happen.

“Cycling is magical,” she said “It frees me from the hustle and bustle of the world, it grounds me, it provides me gratitude for life, strength, nature’s beauty and time to heal. I have been challenging myself for the past year in four different events for NOCC TEAM TEAL. The challenge reminds me to continue living each and every day, that we can do hard things and it’s not the mountain, run or ride that we need to conquer, but rather we need to conquer ourselves. I ride for NOCC TEAM TEAL to hopefully provide a beacon of light for hope for others diagnosed with this horrible disease, but also to shine a light on much needed advocacy and awareness.”

Meredith is hopeful TEAM TEAL will have 21 cyclists in El Tour “for my 21 years of survivorship,” she said.

If anyone is interested in joining us, they can sign up at: Team TEAL – ovarian.org. Together you can raise awareness, offer hope and support NOCC programs, resources, and research for a cure. Our mission is simple, no one born with ovaries should lose their life to ovarian cancer.

Please contact the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition at teamteal@ovarian.org before registering for the El Tour de Tucson. Complimentary registration is a benefit for riders of NOCC TEAM TEAL for those who reach our fundraising minimum of $1,200. For more information on El Tour de Tucson through Team Teal visit https://www.bikesignup.com/Race/80091/Charity/26731