My Breast Cancer Story

I am a 27 year breast cancer survivor.  My story begins with losing my uncle to multiple myeloma in 1996, my mom to breast, lung cancer and lymphoma  .I was her main caregiver for three years (1996-1999) watching her endure chemotherapy and a secondary diagnosis of lung cancer and then lymphoma.  She passed on January 26, 1999, just 25 days after her 63rd birthday.  She was my rock and I couldn’t bear losing her.  Six months after her passing, I was diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer at 35 y.o.  I thought “I am surely going to die… just like my mother.”  My support was gone and I was alone…My treatment required a mastectomy, 8 cycles (treatments) of high dose chemotherapy (Adriamycin and Cytoxan), 35 radiation treatments and 5 years of oral Tamoxifen (an anti-estrogen treatment that inhibited estrogen that was feeding the cancer.)  I was unable to have breast reconstruction with my mastectomy because I was diagnosed at stage 3 with cancer in 8 of 10 of my lymph nodes in my axilla and I needed emergency chemotherapy.  Lymph nodes are the cancer’s method of metastasizing (moving to other areas of the body).  After treatment, I asked about my future and all my oncologist could tell me was “Go live every day... ”I realized that meant it didn’t look good.  After much thought and contemplation, I decided I’d better do just that – “LIVE EVERY DAY!” and make the rest of my life worthwhile regardless of how much time I had.  I obtained my Registered Nurse degree and became an oncology nurse!  I began working on the Oncology Floor at Trinity Health Ann Arbor (St Joe) and after a year and a half moved to the Outpatient Oncology Infusion Clinic which had been my goal.  I am still working in the infusion clinic and, here, I provide patients with chemotherapy and other anti-cancer medications.  I have been fundraising with the American Cancer Society through Relay for Life and Making Strides Against Breast Cancer since my diagnosis.  In my work in the clinic, I began seeing the difficulties patients were encountering and my advocacy work for cancer patients and cancer policy began in 2019 by vising House Rep. Debbie Dingell’s office on a trip to Washington DC determined to make a difference.  That fueled my mission even further and I began seeking out other advocacy volunteer opportunities with the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the Ann Arbor Oncology Nursing Society (ONS).  Both of which I am still involved with today.  I just returned from two advocacy trips back- to-back this past September to Washington DC; once with the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) and the latter trip with the Ann Arbor Chapter, Oncology Nursing Society (ONS).  This is my life’s work!  And my mantra – “Live Every Day, One Day at a Time”!!