Dr. Jerri Nielsen Dead At 57

June 24, 2009 9:30 a.m. EST

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - Dr. Jerri Nielsen passed away from cancer on Tuesday at the age of 57. Her brother, Eric Cahill, told the public that Nielsen died surrounded by family in Massachusetts.

Nielsen had spent years working in the emergency rooms of hospitals and in 1998 was hired to serve as the physician for the lonely Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station in the Antarctic.

During her stay at the station, Nielsen found a lump in her breast and accurately diagnosed herself with breast cancer. The diagnosis prompted a series of airlifts to bring her lifesaving medical supplies in the remote outpost.

However, in 1999 she required further medical care. The United States launched the earliest flight ever recorded into the Antarctic winter to retrieve her.

Nielsen's story became a best-selling autobiography, 'Ice Bound: A Doctor's Incredible Story of Survival at the South Pole' and a TV movie staring Susan Sarandon.