Cheryl Cuddy’s Story

When you think about your breast cancer story, where does it begin?

Cheryl was 39 when she was diagnosed with breast cancer.

Her story began with her first mammogram in September of 2006. A few weeks later, on October 13, 2006, she received the news that would change everything.

“I did not know what to do,” she remembers.

At first, Cheryl kept the diagnosis to herself. At the time, life already felt overwhelming. 

“My life was a train wreck right then,” she reflects. “We lost our house, got divorced, and my mom died. I always say I had the three whammies.” 

But her diagnosis brought along the fourth.

“I kept this secret to myself for a few weeks, and it was awful,” she wrote in her 2017 blog. “I knew I had to tell my family, so I finally did.” 

Once she did, everything moved quickly. Within the next month, she was preparing for surgery. Her daughter was in high school, her son was in fifth grade, and Cheryl knew she had to keep going for them.

 

What was treatment like for you?

Cheryl was treated at Dana-Farber in Boston. At first, she thought surgery would be enough. She underwent a mastectomy on her left side, but after surgery, her care team determined that she would need chemotherapy as well.

Because chemotherapy had not been part of the original plan, Cheryl did not have a port. Treatment was intense, and she remembers how sick she became.

“I’d have my chemo, come home, do the Neulasta, and then I’d end up in the hospital for five days,” she says. “Sick, sick, sick.”

After five treatments, her team decided not to give her the sixth. Even though treatment had been so difficult, Cheryl remembers the fear that came with hearing that plan change.

“I was like, well, I need it. You told me I have to have it, and now you’re not going to give it to me?”

 

What do you remember about reconstruction?

Cheryl remembers going into reconstruction without fully understanding everything that would come with it. She went by herself to an appointment and was put in a room to watch a video explaining different options.

“They put me in a room to watch this video of all these different procedures,” she says. “I was like, ‘Oh my God, what am I getting into?’”

Years later, Cheryl began thinking about repairing her mastectomy reconstruction. For a long time, she put it off. But as she approached 60, she decided it was time to take care of herself.

“I was like, I’m sick of putting things off,” she says. “I need to just take care of me.”

In January, 19 years after her mastectomy, Cheryl had the repair done by the same plastic surgeon who had cared for her years earlier.

“It was like full circle to me,” she says. “I feel good.”

 

What do you want newly diagnosed women to know?

Cheryl wants women who are newly diagnosed to understand that the beginning can feel terrifying, but it does not have to be the end of the story.

“Some of these girls think your life’s over, or tragedy happens,” she says. “And you’ve got to reel it in in your brain and be like, I’ve got to fight for me, or my kids, or just to get better.”

For Cheryl, the years have brought perspective. What once felt impossible has become something she can now look back on from the other side.

“One year, oh my God. Two years,” she says. “Now I’m like, did that really happen to me?”

Today, she is preparing to turn 60. Her children are doing well. She is planning to retire next year. And she is now a grandmother to Connor James—CJ for short—who had just come home from the hospital on the day of her interview.

“I’ve got a grandbaby now,” she says. “My kids are good.”

 

How are you celebrating this chapter?

For Cheryl, October 13 is the day she marks as the beginning of her breast cancer story—the day she found out.

“Thirteen is just my number,” she says. “My birthday is the 13th. Everything happens on the 13th.”

Now, as she approaches 20 years since diagnosis, Cheryl sees the milestone as more than survival. It is a chance to show other women what is possible.

“I think it’s good for some people to say, I’m still here, and it’s 20 years,” she says.

And Cheryl is not letting this milestone pass quietly. She is planning a 20-year celebration for herself in September, complete with a band, friends, family, and the people who have been part of her story.

“I had my 10-year,” she says. “Fifteen, COVID hit, so I didn’t have it. So now I’m doing it.”

For Cheryl, the celebration is about more than a party. It is about honoring everything she has been through and everything that is still ahead.

“I feel good,” she says. “How do I feel good 20 years later?”

 

Why did you want to return to Runway this year?

Cheryl first modeled with Runway in 2017, and her photos from that day still mean something to her.

“I have Runway pictures hanging in my kitchen,” she says. “I look at them like my good memories.”

When Runway invited models back to celebrate its 20th anniversary in Boston, Cheryl felt pulled to return—especially because of her own 20-year milestone. She feels called to show up, celebrate, and be visible for the women who are just beginning.

Part of that decision came after a walk she did recently, where participants held signs marking how many years they had been survivors. Cheryl found herself near the end of the line, close to the 20-year mark, with very few people around her.

“It was like nobody was at the end of the line but me and one other girl,” she says. “I was like, wow.”

That moment stayed with her. 

“I want some of these young girls to know it’s okay,” she says. “You can push through.”

Cheryl’s story is one of survival, perspective, humor, and choosing to keep showing up. Twenty years after diagnosis, she is still here—celebrating her family, her future, her new grandson, and every woman who needs to see that life after breast cancer can still be full.