ALBION, Neb. -- It’s the words that no one wants to hear, but for many this is a reality. 

“The doctor looked at us and said: ‘You’re not getting a colonoscopy. You have stage 4 colon cancer and you have surgery in six days,'” Pedro said. 

Ashley Pedro, a woman from Albion, was diagnosed with colorectal cancer at a young age. 

“I knew from the look on her face that something was wrong and she sent me for a CT scan,” Pedro said. “I was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer at the age of 33.”

Pedro initially had surgery to get the mass removed but it wasn’t long before the cancer returned with, what Pedro said, “a vengeance”. 

“It didn’t really hit me until March of 2022 when they said 'it has come back and you have potentially,' the words that I was told was, 'if you live five years you are going to be an exception to the rule,'” Pedro said. “My other oncologist said 'you have one to two years on chemo' and that hit the hardest.” 

But how does this connect to rubber ducks?

Starting years back, a woman in Canada left a rubber duck on someone’s car with a positive note to brighten up their day. Pedro learned about this idea and launched something of her own. 

“I thought, 'what a perfect way to incorporate something fun,' and then add the little personalized notes,” Pedro said.

Pedro’s goal is to distribute these ducks across a minimum of 33 states, in an effort to raise $33,000 considering Pedro was diagnosed at the age of 33. 

“You can actually see that I have the United States on a slide show with all the states and then Canada,” Pedro said. “So 33 states minimum and then I would like to raise at least $33,000.”

There is still hope for Pedro, as she heads to Texas for the next six weeks, starting on Wednesday. She will be engaged in a clinical trial to fight back against the disease. 

“When it comes back, the chances of survival is less,” Pedro said. “My cancer is apparently very aggressive."

According to Fight Colorectal Cancer, diagnosis of colorectal cancer continues to increase among adults younger than 50 and by 2030, colorectal cancer will be the leading cancer killer to those under 50. Pedro said the time to act is now

“Some people buy, you know, one duck,” Pedro said. “I had a friend of mine come and purchase 60 ducks. They are actually going to the P!nk concert so they’re spreading our love in Omaha. That is a concert we are actually missing because I have to go back down to MD Anderson for another clinical trial.” 

The ducks each have a tag attached to them with the resources that people can access to help donate to Pedro, as those funds will be transferred to cancer research.

“The biggest thing that I can say is advocate,” Pedro said. “That’s kind of what I am doing with the ducks, is advocating for colorectal cancer and advocating for awareness. The blue ribbon you don’t see very much and colon cancer in general you don’t hear a whole lot about.”