Police Officer Battling Rare Form Of Breast Cancer; Needs Help

RACINE, WI — A police officer in Racine is fighting a rare form of cancer, and loved ones are asking for the public's help in order to get her through this troubling time.

In June 2019, Lina Edwardson, an officer with the Racine Police Department for more than 17 years, was diagnosed with an incredibly aggressive form of cancer, Triple Negative Breast Cancer.

According to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc., triple negative breast cancer means that the "three most common types of receptors known to fuel most breast cancer growth–estrogen, progesterone, and the HER-2/neu gene– are not present in the cancer tumor." Because these three types of receptors are not present in the cancer, it's tougher to treat. It's also present in between 10 to 20 percent of all breast cancer patients, the foundation says.

According to a GoFundMe campaign set up on her behalf, she will be undergoing approximately 20 weeks of chemotherapy followed by several invasive surgeries and radiation therapy.

How to Help

You can donate funds to the following GoFundMe campaign:

Help Officer Lina Beat Triple Neg. Breast Cancer!

Family says Edwardson only has 226 hours of paid sick time which, will not be able to cover her time spent away from work as she undergoes chemotherapy.

A GoFundMe page was set up so people could donate funds to her, to help alleviate some of the financial burden put on her family while she battles this aggressive form of cancer.

"We have created this campaign because several people have asked for another way to donate if they are unable to make it to the actual event," personal friend Jana Lipari said. "Any amount donated is greatly appreciated and will be going directly to help take care of a woman who has dedicated her life to caring for the safety of her community."

For those who can travel to the Racine area, a fundraiser event has been set up at Dickie’s Bar, 1537 Durand Ave. in Mount Pleasant on Sep. 28.