Three Months at a Time

Your Stories: Conquering Cancer

Gabriele “Gabe” Grunewald was a professional distance runner and a relentless optimist.

She competed in Big Ten Championship races, became an NCAA track and field All-American athlete, and finished 4th in the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials. Such accomplishments become even more impressive when you learn that—even as she racked up accolades and wins—Gabe also faced cancer numerous times.

In 2009, Gabe was diagnosed with a rare type of cancer called adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC). Then, in 2010, she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Despite these circumstances, Gabe persevered, continuing to train and run professionally. She also became a rare cancer advocate, launching the Brave Like Gabe Foundation to encourage other patients and survivors to embrace their own courage and chase their dreams.

In June 2019, after a decade of living with ACC, Gabe passed away at her home in Minneapolis surrounded by loved ones—including her husband, Dr. Justin Grunewald. An ultra-marathon runner himself, Dr. Grunewald is also an internal medicine specialist and chair of the Brave Like Gabe Foundation’s Rare Cancer Research Working Group. He joins the Your Stories podcast to share more about Gabe’s story and legacy, along with the importance of supporting rare cancer research so that patients with these rare diseases have more hope for better outcomes.