Dr. Jerri Nielsen dies of cancer she found

BOSTON, June 24 (UPI) -- Dr. Jerri Nielsen, who diagnosed herself with breast cancer while serving at a remote outpost in Antarctica, died this week at the age of 57.

Nielsen captured world headlines in 1999 when she discovered a dreaded lump in her breast and then treated herself with chemotherapy drugs dropped by parachute to the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Research Station.

Her brother, Eric Cahill, told CNN his sister died early Tuesday at a Massachusetts hospital. Plans for services were still pending on Wednesday.

Nielsen's plight was compounded by the remote location and harsh weather conditions. Although she discovered the tumor in June, aircraft could not fly into the station to pick her up until October.

In the meantime, she treated her own disease while acting as the only doctor for the station's 41-person staff.

The Detroit Free Press said earlier this year that she performed a biopsy on herself with the help of other crew members who practiced inserting the needle on raw chicken from the freezer.

Nielsen wrote a book about her ordeal but the cancer came back in 2005 and spread to her brain and other organs, CNN said.