Coronavirus: Bay Area cancer survivor recounts battle with COVID-19, says she's 'terrified to go back out'
MARIN COUNTY, Calif. (KGO) -- One COVID-19 survivor in Marin County calls the virus the worst experience of her life, even after battling cancer two years ago. She is now at home telling her story.
There is a picture of a healthy 58-year-old Stacy Allegro on her Facebook page back in January, smiling.
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But on March 18 she began getting symptoms after her husband returned from a trip to Morocco. Eleven days later she was in the emergency room, she posted "fighting for my life" with COVID-19.
Today out of the hospital she talked to ABC7 news about her ordeal.
"All I could do was stare at the ceiling burning with fever feeling like a pinata being beaten up by kids at a birthday party," she explained.
While at Kaiser San Rafael Medical Center, Allegro continued to post about her condition. She wrote about her high fever and sweating through three sets of bedding per night.
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She will never forget how isolation brought loneliness.
"I don't think that I was scared that I wasn't going to make it, I was scared that I wasn't ready to lose the people in my life without being able to say goodbye," she said holding back the tears.
Allegro told us, she'll always remember her medical team including Dr. Orna Hananel posting messages of gratitude on the hospital wall for the staff on the 4th floor.
Dr. Hananel said in Marin County the virus has not exclusively affected the sick and elderly.
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"The average again with disease is 54, very young. So they're seeing people below 50 and seeing people above 50," outlined Dr. Hananel.
After spending seven days in the hospital Allegro was released but remains in isolation at her family home in Sonoma.
"I'm terrified to go back out even if they say it's OK. I don't know that I'm going to feel okay with it," she said cautiously optimistic about her condition.
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