LaWanda Woumnm’s Story

What was life like before your diagnosis?

LaWanda was looking forward to a new chapter.

She was excited to have more time to volunteer and fulfill her goal of mentoring at-risk children. In July, she joined the Natick Police Department to train as a 911 dispatcher and felt ready to begin something meaningful and new.

Then, six days after joining the department, her doctor called.

LaWanda had Stage 2 HER2+ breast cancer.

“It was a devastating blow,” she says, “as I had just had a physical and had passed with flying colors.”

 

What did treatment look like?

LaWanda’s treatment plan was aggressive.

It began with weekly chemotherapy for 14 weeks, and during that time, she was unable to work. She credits the Natick Police Department with granting her an unpaid leave of absence until treatment was over and she could return to her training.

That decision allowed her to focus fully on her cancer treatment, health, and wellness.

But treatment took a tremendous toll.

By her fifth treatment, all of LaWanda’s hair had fallen out. Her weight dropped. The fatigue was so extreme that she would sleep for two to three days at a time.

She also experienced inflammation, skin rashes, neuropathy in her hands and feet, and deep exhaustion.

Her treatment continued with a partial mastectomy, 21 consecutive radiation treatments, a total left hip replacement, and additional infusion treatments.

Eventually, LaWanda reached a point where she questioned how much more she could take. She spiraled into a deep depression.

Through that darkness, she relied on her faith.

 

What did you learn about asking for help?

Along with the physical and emotional toll of treatment came financial stress.

LaWanda had medical insurance and savings from years of working, but she worried about what would happen when the money ran out.

She had never asked for help before.

That became one of the biggest lessons of her experience.

“When people tell you to ask for help”, LaWanda says, “do it.”

She learned that people wanted to help. And when she finally asked, they did.

In February 2022, support came through the Ellie Fund, connected through the social worker at her radiation oncologist’s office, longtime Runway advisor Joelle Connors.

LaWanda remembers being in tears.

Not only because she received help, but because she asked for it and realized how many people wanted to step up.

The Ellie Fund helped provide months of financial assistance, including transportation to and from treatment and support for proper nutritional foods throughout treatment.

 

Who helped you through?

LaWanda is deeply grateful for the people who surrounded her during treatment.

She credits Joelle Connors, her entire medical team — lovingly referred to as her “cancer team” — her daughter Shamika, and her nearest and dearest friends with helping her continue forward.

Together, they helped her move toward what she calls “the greatest me ever.”

LaWanda’s electric energy is impossible to miss. Sit with her for even a minute, and you feel surrounded by her warmth.

It is that same warmth she hopes to give back to others.

 

What do you want others to know?

Even while fighting breast cancer, LaWanda wanted her story to inspire, encourage, and motivate.

She never wanted cancer to become the whole of who she was.

“Breast cancer is what happened to me,” she says. “It is not my identity.”

Every day, LaWanda reminded herself who she was through her faith.

“I am who God says I am,” she says. “I am approved, I am accepted, I am valuable, I am a masterpiece, and I am a child of the Most High God.”

That truth carried her then.

It continues to carry her now.

 

Where are you now?

Today, LaWanda is extremely grateful to be a member of the Runway for Recovery family.

And she is celebrating beautiful news.

After her last PET scan in May 2026, there were no signs of cancer.

“Yaaaaaay me!!” LaWanda says. “I am living life on life’s terms and loving it!!”

This year, we celebrate LaWanda’s faith, resilience, honesty, joy, and the way she continues to remind everyone around her that a diagnosis may change your life, but it does not get to define who you are.

On the Runway stage, we look forward to celebrating LaWanda exactly as she is: approved, accepted, valuable, a masterpiece, and living life on life’s terms.