Keeping afloat during the pandemic

Swimming was how Kara Wolter found solace, especially after her bone cancer diagnosis and leg amputation. But COVID often took away her safe place and delayed her Swim Across America race. Here’s how she ultimately crossed the finish line.

11:02 AM

Author | Mary Clare Fischer

father drying off daughter on head with white towel with daughter wearing swim cap and goggles.
Kara Wolter and her father, Klaus, towel off after their half-mile swim during the 2021 Swim Across America Motor City Mile Open Water Swim, which raises money for cancer research at the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center.

The Detroit River was chilly on the morning of July 9, 2021, when Kara Wolter slid into the water to begin her half-mile swim.

The cold made it difficult to breathe, especially because Wolter had had several lung surgeries. But Wolter was determined to brave the biting temperature. She'd been waiting to freestyle through these choppy waves for years.

That day, Wolter was participating in the Motor City Mile Open Water Swim. It's one of more than 20 local swims, organized by the nonprofit Swim Across America, that raise money for research at cancer centers in their communities. The University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center receives all funds raised from the Detroit event

As both an avid swimmer and a Rogel Cancer Center patient, Wolter was eager to take part in the inaugural Swim Across America Motor City Mile, in 2019. Yet a portion of her left leg had recently been amputated to ensure that her osteosarcoma, a type of bone cancer, wouldn't return or spread, and she didn't have enough time after the surgery to train for the swim. She geared up for the 2020 event, but organizers ended up nixing the in-person group swim in favor of a virtual format because of the pandemic.

All of this was tough on Wolter. She'd been swimming since a diagnosis of Osgood-Schlatter disease, which causes pain in the growth plate near the knee. At the time, the diagnosis forced her to quit running track and cross country as a teenager, but the water had always been her happy place.

"I loved it, and I learned quickly," she said. "I was never necessarily the fastest swimmer, but I was one of the most beautiful swimmers."

After Wolter's amputation in 2019, her connection with the water grew even deeper. Its low-impact nature took away her pain, and she didn't need to change much about the way she flowed around the ripples, unlike her movement on land, which required much more planning and assistive devices like a wheelchair, crutches, her prosthesis or a cane. In the water, she was free.

SEE ALSO: Waiting to Dive Back In

"I still sometimes get very angry that I lost my leg and realize that this is for the rest of my life and that it's not just going to grow back one day," Wolter said. "But being in the water makes me forget that I'm missing my leg." 

"People are amazed that I can swim, and I'm like, 'Well, what do you mean?,'" she added. "It just turns into more upper body, you know? And I've been swimming for so long prior to my leg loss that it's instinct to me."

And swimming helps Wolter physically just as much as mentally. She credits the activity for her high scores on pulmonary function tests, despite the multiple tumors she's had her in her lungs. And Danielle Raymond, P.T., her former physical therapist, believes it's improved Wolter's ability to use her prosthesis.

"Swimming promotes improved respiratory and cardiovascular fitness, increased flexibility and strength as well as pain reduction," said Raymond, who works in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Michigan Medicine. "All of those physical benefits have helped Kara to use her prosthesis more successfully."

But when indoor pools closed to reduce transmission of the coronavirus early in the pandemic, it was difficult to find places to swim, particularly over the winter. And Wolter's latest round of chemotherapy made her so tired that exercise often wasn't feasible. In February, she was so ready to be back in the water and get a break from cancer treatment that she and her boyfriend, Bill, took a trip to Key West, Florida.

"Once I got in the ocean, it was a whole different feeling of just, 'OK, I can relax. I feel at home here. I feel good here. Nothing hurts,'" Wolter said. "That's the biggest thing — there's no pain. It just feels good." (It didn't hurt that Bill proposed on that trip either.)

Since then, as vaccines became more available and the air warmed, Wolter began making lap lane reservations at the Dexter Wellness Center's pool and taking advantage of the lakes in the area. She wasn't pushing herself to train for Swim Across America, so to speak, but she regularly swam half a mile, the same distance she planned to take on in the Motor City Mile swim.

On July 9, Wolter arrived at the Belle Isle beach house, the designated meeting place for the swim, with an entourage in tow: her dad, her mom and a family friend. She ran into other friends too, including Rob Atteberry, who has competed in half-marathons, triathlons and Ironmans since his brain cancer diagnosis.

It's nice to know that my cancer center and others around the country are receiving funds from Swim Across America for a better future and — maybe even one day a cure.
Kara Wolter

Some faces were new, like Vicki Bunke, who's swimming in 14 different Swim Across America events this year in honor of her daughter, Grace, who died of osteosarcoma at age 14. Wolter cried listening to Bunke speak, and Bunke came over and gave Wolter a hug afterward. 

And then it was Wolter's turn to serve as inspiration. A young woman came over and asked to take a picture with her, having heard Wolter speak at the 2019 event. (Wolter had parked her wheelchair at the finish line to shake hands and cheer participants on, even though she couldn't swim.)

"She ended up saying that I inspired her in 2019 to swim, and this was her first year doing it. And it was because of me," Wolter said. "That made me tear up a little bit. There were actually so many people coming over and telling me they remembered me from 2019 and they were so glad I was swimming, and that was really nice."

The race itself was challenging, especially with the river's strong currents. But Wolter's father, Klaus, swam with her as her "guardian swimmer," checking on her every few minutes to make sure she was doing OK.

When Wolter got out of the water, Rob Butcher, the president and CEO of Swim Across America, asked her if she would swim a mile in the event next year. Wolter was out of breath, which she says might have influenced her response of, "I don't think so."

But she said she'll be at the 2022 event, even if another surgery keeps her from swimming, to support everyone there — and the cancer center that she says has saved her life multiple times.

SEE ALSO: Triathlete Taps Training Habits to Power Through Colorectal Cancer

"The nurses there are amazing, the doctors there are amazing, the janitors, the front desk people, the people in the parking structure, everyone there is just amazing," Wolter said. "It is definitely the place to go if you have a rare cancer."

"But some cancers do not have a lot of research behind them, such as osteosarcoma, because it is so rare," she added. "So it's nice to know that my cancer center and others around the country are receiving funds from Swim Across America for a better future and — maybe even one day a cure."


More Articles About: Cancer Care Cancer Research Cancer Survivorship and Long-Term Follow-Up Sarcoma Cancer Cancer: Help, Diagnosis & Treatment
Health Lab word mark overlaying blue cells
Health Lab

Explore a variety of health care news & stories by visiting the Health Lab home page for more articles.

Media Contact Public Relations

Department of Communication at Michigan Medicine

[email protected]

734-764-2220

Stay Informed

Want top health & research news weekly? Sign up for Health Lab’s newsletters today!

Subscribe
Featured News & Stories Sewing Machine Cell Fabric Tangled
Health Lab
Research points to potential new treatment for aggressive prostate cancer subtype
In two separate papers, U-M researchers describe how a gene alteration drives prostate cancer and a potential degrader that stops it
machine beige black
Health Lab
Histotripsy liver tumor trial successful, early clinical adoption recommended
The #HOPE4LIVER trials, testing the safety efficacy of histotripsy as a treatment for primary and metastatic liver tumors, met its goals for technical success and safety. An expert explains more about it in this article.
purple cells attached and merging
Health Lab
Organoid model predicts bladder cancer treatment response
Researchers have developed a new model to help predict treatment response in patients with bladder cancer. 
little girl smiling on left and on right wearing pink glasses
Health Lab
3-year-old back to cheerful self following complex surgery for rare aggressive chest tumor
A young girl gets back to her childhood after a 3D printed replica of her tumor helps her Michigan Medicine surgical team perform a successful operation.
girl on left with tan hat beanie and black shirt and green writing and on right with mom smiling same outfit and matching shirts
Health Lab
Teen with bone marrow transplant shares cancer journey online
A teenager shares her rare lymphoma diagnosis and bone marrow transplant story online.
blue cells close up with orangey see through circle going in and an explosion of bright yellow orange to the far left in that circle with purple circles floating in background
Health Lab
Researchers identify factor that drives prostate cancer-causing genes
Researchers have uncovered a key reason why a typically normal protein goes awry and fuels cancer. They found the protein NSD2 alters the function of the androgen receptor, an important regulator of normal prostate development.