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Bull attack leads to cancer diagnosis
Evan Axelbank reports.
BROOKSVILLE, Fla. - A Brooksville woman who was attacked by her own bull back in November received unexpected news while in the hospital treating her injuries.
Teal Mull was on her ranch on November 10, 2023, when she walked outside to see her son getting "whammed" by their 2,000 pound bull they call Berry. Her next decision was the only one a mother could make – with her son knocked out, she tried to block the bull.
"I regret that," she said. "But, I [also] don't regret it."
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The bull chased her in circles until, eventually, ramming and goring her. She was then knocked to the ground by the bull.
"I just kind of gave up the ghost. I was like, 'okay, Lord, I'm done here. I can't hold out any longer,'" Teal said.
However, her brother-in-law, Garth Mull, raced over with a tractor and pushed the bull away.
"They are a lot stronger than you think they are, that's for sure," said Garth.
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Teal was left with face and body bruises as well as a broken rib after the attack. But, the scans taken that night at the hospital revealed something else: Lung cancer.
The cancer had the potential to kill her within a year, but Tampa General Hospital's Dr. Jonathan Daniel removed the tumor just two weeks ago. On Monday, Teal got the good news that her cancer hadn't spread.
"I'm alive, and I'm going to stay alive," she said. "I just feel like I got another chance."
Though Teal promised to give up smoking after her diagnosis, doctors said those decisions often come too late. Lung cancer oftentimes doesn't show symptoms in its early stages.
"This has probably been in her body for maybe even a couple of years," said Daniel. "And so, these tumors have an exponential doubling time."
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Since her cancer hasn't spread, Teal can now speak out and remind smokers to get screened without waiting to be injured or risking discovering cancer too late.
She also approaches her bull much differently.
"[When I see Berry, I say], 'you stay over there. I'll stay over here, and we'll be fine,'" Teal said.