The couple met after the bride's diagnosis.
Laurin Bank wasn’t going to let cancer stop her from having her dream wedding.
The 29-year-old, of South Carolina, was first diagnosed with stage two breast cancer in 2014. She began chemotherapy and was preparing to have a double mastectomy, but she still thought it would be nice to go on a date.
Bank joined the dating site Plenty of Fish and included a picture showing her after she’d already lost her hair.
She met Michael Bank in March 2015 and had her double mastectomy a month later.
After the surgery, doctors said Bank was healthy again and the pair continued dating.
“Mike was there through everything,” Bank said. “I was healthy and it was exciting.”
But in August 2017, Bank received scary news again. She was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and it had metastasized to her liver and bones.
The couple had gotten engaged just two months prior and had already chosen a wedding date: March 24, 2018.
“We had already started planning our wedding and sending out save the dates,” Bank told InsideEdition.com. “I was telling my doctor that I fought once and I can fight again.”
Michael Bank was determined to stick by his soon-to-be wife’s side.
“When we met we both had a lot of challenges in our lives, so we focused our relationship on having fun and enjoying,” Michael Bank said. “That is what we still do over three years later.”
Bank began chemotherapy soon after but it was not working, doctors said. In December 2017, she found out the cancer had spread to her lungs.
Doctors encouraged the couple to move their wedding day up because they weren’t sure if she would make it. Doctors also said if she did, it may be in a wheelchair.
But Bank was determined. She still took part in wedding milestones, including a bridal shower and bachelorette party. In February, just a month before her wedding, Bank started a clinical trial recommended by her oncologist.
“We felt that if we gave in to changing our wedding date, then we were giving in to cancer,” Bank said.
A local non-profit, In the Middle, helped them plan the wedding as Bank focused on her health.
The couple made it to the big day last month and Bank was able to walk down the aisle with ease.
“The day went off perfect,” Bank said. “We danced the night away which was my goal. Even through all the doubts, and question, and caution, we were thankful that we didn’t change the date because it was perfect.”
And then she was given the best wedding gift life could give. They found out last week that Bank’s tumors are shrinking.
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