Latest news with #SaraCosta
RTÉ News
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
Texas Rose Sara Costa has 'nothing but thankfulness' after cancer battle
Sara Costa, the 2025 Texas Rose, has said she feels nothing but "thankfulness" after battling thyroid cancer. Speaking at the launch of the Rose of Tralee festival, the 21-year-old student said it was "shocking" to be diagnosed with cancer as a teenager, but she said she feels thankful to "be on this side of it". "I was diagnosed when I was 18 years old. I had no reason to think that anything was wrong. I got the biopsy back, found out it was cancer," she told RTÉ Entertainment. "Really shocking words to hear at the age of 18. All my friends were going to college. I had to stay home, take a gap year, and I had a really tough surgery, had to go to doctor's appointments all the time. "It was really shocking, it was really difficult. But I am who I am today because of that difficult experience. So I have nothing but thankfulness to be on this side of it." The Austin native, who is currently studying Political Communication and the Persian language at the University of Texas at Austin, said she was "kind of recruited" by the 2017 Texas Rose through their shared passion for Irish dance. "I found out about it when I was 12 years old," she said of the Rose of Tralee. "The 2017 Texas Rose, Lydian Lawler Lopez, was actually the one who kind of recruited me! "She was an Irish dancer at the same time I was, and she came up to me at a feis and was like, 'So Sara, are you gonna do the Rose of Tralee one day?', and I was like, 'Tell me more!' "She gave me the elevator pitch, gave me the rundown, and I was like, 'That is something that I would love to do some day'. "So I've been holding tight since I was 12 years old, waiting for a good time to come do this." Sara said the Rose of Tralee was "such a unique opportunity to solely celebrate women, specifically women with Irish heritage", and it has been "so exciting to be in the mix with all of these amazing, passionate, intelligent women". "It's another way to connect to my heritage. Now I get to add on something else to my life that has really deepened those connections and opened up a whole network for me in Austin and abroad of fellow Irish people who are happy to welcome me with open arms," she said. Sara, whose Irish roots hail from Collooney, Co Sligo, added that her family are "so proud" of her.
Irish Daily Mirror
6 days ago
- Health
- Irish Daily Mirror
'I beat thyroid cancer at 18 - now I'm chasing my dream as Rose of Tralee'
Texas Rose Sara Costa has opened up about overcoming thyroid cancer at just 18 years old as she hopes to be crowned this year's Rose of Tralee. The 21-year-old, whose Irish roots hail from Collooney, Co Sligo, has travelled from Austin, Texas to Kerry for this year's 65th International Festival. Sara explained: "I was diagnosed with metastatic thyroid cancer in 2022. I was 18 years old. All my friends were going off to university, and I had a big surgery. So I had a radical modified neck dissection here, took out my thyroid and 76 lymph nodes, so I have no lymph nodes in the left side of my neck anymore. So that was really a hard time for me. "I felt kind of left behind because all my friends were going off to university, and I had to stay back and pursue treatment options and have this big surgery. But it taught me a lot about resilience and perseverance, and I knew that, you know, there were good things on the other side. "So everything I've gone through with that has shaped me and formed me into the person that I am today. So I'm thankful for it." Sara said she was "absolutely shocked" when doctors told her she had cancer, saying she found it "very damaging" when medical professionals referred to her cancer as the better illness to get. "Absolutely shocked. I never would have expected that even the doctors were like, you're 18 years old, you're very active, you're very healthy. Never would have expected it. But there is a common saying from medical professionals, when they're diagnosing someone with thyroid cancer, they'll tell you, Oh, this is the good cancer. "Or if there's any kind of cancer you'd want to have, it's this one. And I found that to be very damaging as a young person, because it totally disrupted my life. I think although cancer, thyroid cancer, has a really good prognosis, about 98 to 99% of cancer patients, at least, the American statistics say, they survive. "So that's a great prognosis at the end of the day. It also, you know, should be noted that cancer has one job, and it's to destroy your body. It's gonna do that to the best of its abilities. There is no such thing as good cancer." Sara opened up about her symptoms in a bid to warn others. "I actually had a very well functioning thyroid. I had no physical symptoms, except for the fact that I had tonsillitis. And after having tonsillitis, I had one lymph node that swelled up when I was sick, and instead of going back down after my sickness, it stayed and it got hard and it got bigger. "So I just had one big lymph node on the left side of my neck actually went to like, three different medical professionals before someone actually finally checked it out and did blood work and did a biopsy. I think healthcare for women also tends to be that way, where maybe you're being a little bit hysterical or a little bit dramatic. So they send you home and say, take Tylenol. Come back to us when you feel better and you know it was something more serious." Sara said becoming a Rose of Tralee was something she always wanted to do. "I believe it's very empowering. I think as a woman, it's very rare to have 10 days of pure celebration of you, celebration of where you come from, and a true, genuine celebration of friendship and something that we all share in common. So that's what it means to me. On a broader scale, I also am studying Political Communications in school, and would love to get into diplomacy in the future. "And I think it's really an amazing opportunity at the age of 21 to be able to represent something that's important to me, because it kind of ties into the career that I want to have in the future," she added. Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
Irish Daily Mirror
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Mirror
Kerry Rose backed to do a famous double for the Kingdom
Kerry Rose Laura Daly is being backed at the bookies to complete a famous double for the Kingdom when the Rose of Tralee festivities kick off this weekend. With Sam Maguire silverware already in the trophy cabinet after the county's footballers triumphed over Donegal in the All-Ireland Final, there could be plenty more to celebrate when this year's winner dons the famous sash next Tuesday. Laura has been clipped into 5/1 from 7/1 by BOYLE Sports just days before the annual festival takes centre stage, as the 23 year-old dancer bids to become the first Kerry native to secure a local victory in the competition since Margaret O'Keeffe in 1964. Lawrence Lyons, spokesperson for BOYLE Sports, said: 'Kerry is already basking in the glow of Sam Maguire's return and now all eyes are on the Kerry Rose to see if she can complete a famous double. A Rose of Tralee crown on top of an All-Ireland title would be the stuff of county folklore and punters clearly fancy the fairytale to come true.' The latest betting means she is now second favourite, but the odds suggest some hot competition from a neighbouring county, as Cork's Nancy Lehane has been singled out as the bookies' frontrunner. The Meelin girl has a passion for singing and also adds the piano, guitar, concertina and tin whistle to an impressive array of musical talents. With winners representing New York and New Zealand over the past two years, another international victor could also be on the cards with UAE Rose Ceiline O'Meara (5/1) also well fancied. Ceiline, who packed her beloved harp when she moved to the Middle East from her native county of Limerick, is a former All-Ireland Fleadh Champion who has performed to Emirati royalty at the Dubai World Cup. Tyrone Rose Clóideach Donagh, Boston and New England Rose Maeve Kelly, Kerry Rose Laura Daly, Texas Rose Sara Costa, Carlow Rose Katie Ryan, Down Rose Anna Mulholland, Laois Rose Katelyn Cummins and Meath Rose Ella Bannon. 1 of 8 Carlow Rose Katie Ryan, Down Rose Anna Mulholland, Laois Rose Katelyn Cummins and Cork Rose Nancy Lehane. 2 of 8 London Rose Shauna Sammon, Boston and New England Rose Maeve Kelly and Texas Rose Sara Costa. 3 of 8 London Rose Shauna Sammon, Boston and New England Rose Maeve Kelly and Texas Rose Sara Costa. 4 of 8
