Type of Sarcoma: Undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma (soft tissue sarcoma)
Date of Diagnosis: September 2021
“If you are not laughing, you are crying” which was Dwight Soeffker’s motto over his 2-year battle with cancer. His goal was to attend every doctor’s visit with a positive attitude and a goal to make as many laugh as possible. He was in fact successful. There were multiple occasions in which him and his daughter were asked “how do you both continue to keep such a positive attitude?” and to Dwight, that was the only answer.
For months Dwight Soeffker had been experiencing left hip pain, in which anti-inflammatories were helping tremendously… until they weren’t. After waking multiple times over night secondary to intense pain, he booked a doctor’s appointment with plenty of encouragement from his daughter, Sydney. Dwight obtained an x-ray that day in urgent care, which then showed a mass over the left hip, the culprit of his pain. The next couple weeks were devoted to continual testing. Unfortunately, the diagnosis was that of stage 4 soft tissue sarcoma.
Continual rounds of radiation, chemotherapy and a surgical intervention filled the schedules of Dwight and Sydney (his best friend and primary caregiver) over the course of the next 2 years. We can’t forget to mention his favorite activity of pickleball, in which he talked about his goals to play again up until his passing. Unfortunately, this type of cancer was rare and aggressive, causing Dwight to ultimately pass away on October 11, 2023. Dwight maintained his outrageously optimistic personality and humor throughout his entire journey, making some of the best memories with his daughter over those 2 years. He was surrounded by his daughter Sydney Soeffker, as well as and great friend Kim Soeffker on his final morning.
Dwight would want to be known for his hilarious personality, charisma, as well as his love for tennis, pickleball, and the Bahamas. His daughter’s goal is to continue honoring him for the bright light that he was. He is missed every single day.
