Sydney Towle likens her two-year bile duct cancer battle to endlessly running on a treadmill

21 August 2025

Sydney Towle. Credit : Sydney Towle/TikTok

Sydney Towle, the 25-year-old TikTok creator known as SydTowle, shared one of her most raw and emotional reflections yet in a video posted to her 846,000-strong TikTok following on August 20. In the clip, she admitted she was simply “having a moment,” drenched in frustration as she compared her ongoing cancer treatments to running on a treadmill expending endless energy yet never getting closer to the finish line. “You expect your destination to keep getting closer, but it just keeps getting further and further, no matter how hard you run,” she confessed, tears sharpening each word .

The influencer went on to reveal that she and her mother had recently taken stock of the past two years: countless surgeries, rounds of chemotherapy, and cold-capping treatments all part of a grueling routine she’d once approached with grit and resolve. “I remember in the beginning I was so, ‘I can do this, I can do this’,” she said, but then asked the heartbreaking question: “How long do I keep having to do this?” With an aching honesty she concluded, “I want to be off the treadmill” .

Just a week before, on August 13, Towle marked the two-year anniversary of her diagnosis in another vulnerable video. She acknowledged the conflicting emotions she felt the gratitude of being alive thanks to medical advances and the despair of still being deep in treatment. While relief and gratitude filled one side of her heart, the relentless nature of indefinite chemotherapy sank on the other. “Two years down, but how many to go?” she pondered, before finding a sliver of peace in that milestone, urging herself and her viewers to pause and recognize personal resilience .

Towle’s journey began when, at 23, she was diagnosed with cholangiocarcinoma a rare bile duct cancer typically seen in people over 50. Her symptoms began like many young people’s: a bump on her abdomen and strange discomfort during workouts. Diagnostic scans uncovered tumors in her liver and bile duct, leading to complex surgeries and years of intense treatment. Her unvarnished social media documentation quickly resonated, drawing an audience that found comfort in her vulnerability and courage .

For undergraduate-trained Dartmouth graduate, this battle was both physical and social. She fought disbelief from strangers who questioned the authenticity of her illness because she didn’t match the stereotypical image of a cancer patient. She endured judgment even as she retreated into her own suffering. Despite this, both she and her doctors stood firm: her diagnosis came with medical proof, and her story was real .

Against that backdrop, her recent “treadmill” metaphor is more than poetic it’s deeply emblematic. It speaks to the emotional exhaustion of living in a liminal space that’s neither cure nor surrender. On one hand, hope persists with every round of treatment. On the other, fatigue and uncertainty linger, masked by chemotherapy’s unrelenting momentum.

But amid the despair, Towle’s reflections carry unexpected grace. She allowed herself a quiet moment of pride: for surviving two years, for continuing to fight, and for existing beyond a disease that tried to define her. “I think it’s still important to reflect on maybe being proud of myself that I’ve gone through two years of this and proud of my body for all that it’s been through,” she said, reminding viewers that progress isn’t always visible, but that endurance itself is victory .

Towle’s willingness to share her unfiltered grief, frustration, and fleeting triumphs offers a powerful perspective. It underscores how social media can bridge isolation, create support ecosystems, and challenge conventional narratives of illness and strength. It also reminds us of the courage it takes to redefine what a “good day” means especially when simply holding on becomes its own kind of triumph.

In the end, Towle’s story isn’t just about cancer. It’s about continuing, about navigating limbo with dignity, and crucially about honoring the fight, whether or not we reach the finish line on our own terms.