Renee Plodzik’s Story

How has breast cancer affected your life?

Renee Plodzik was 34 when she received her first breast cancer diagnosis.

It was Stage 0, and she had two young children at home.

After a successful mastectomy and no need for further treatment, Renee felt grateful. She also noticed something important.

“There’s so much talk about early detection,” Renee said, “but so little about support after a diagnosis.”

That realization led her to create Fit for a Cause, a donation-based fitness and wellness program that funds local cancer survivors while building community around health, movement, and mindfulness.

Renee went on to have her third child. For nearly a decade, she lived in survivorship.

Then, on her 42nd birthday, life shifted again.

 

What happened when you were diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer?

Renee had been experiencing hip pain.

As an active person, she thought it was from overuse. But scans revealed metastatic lesions across her hip and pelvis.

“I had a feeling when I left the scan,” Renee remembered. “An hour later, I got the call.”

The diagnosis changed the life she had rebuilt.

“The entire first year was just really hard,” Renee shared. “Trying to keep up my old life while carrying the weight of a new diagnosis… I cried every single day.”

For Renee, metastatic breast cancer brought grief, fear, and a new reality she had to learn how to live inside.

 

What helped you begin to move forward?

Renee’s community showed up with love and meals.

She found her way back to movement. She also began connecting with the metastatic breast cancer community, which helped her shift from preparing for dying to focusing on living.

At Love for Runway, Renee shared that she has learned to live in three-month cycles.

“I plan around the next scan,” she said. “When I get good results, I get to plan the next few months of life. I know one day the scans may not be as good—but today is beautiful, and I’m okay today.”

That way of living has shaped how Renee parents, how she spends her time, and how she gives herself grace.

 

What does strength mean to you now?

Renee has changed the way she thinks about strength.

“Maybe I’m not strong enough to live through metastatic breast cancer,” she said. “But I am strong enough to live with it.”

 

What has Runway meant to you?

Renee first attended Runway in 2022, and she remembers how it made her feel.

“It helped me understand that even with a Stage 4 diagnosis, there is hope,” she said. “That no matter what happens, we will be okay.”

Runway gave Renee a space where metastatic breast cancer was not hidden. It gave her a community that could hold the full truth of what she was living.

 

What do you want people to understand about supporting someone with metastatic breast cancer?

Renee knows that anxiety and worry take up so much space.

What helps most is not advice, miracle cures, or pressure to stay positive at all costs.

“Just meet us where we are,” Renee says. “Cry with us. Laugh with us. Sit beside us.”

Support does not have to be perfect. It just has to be present.

She is learning to live in the moment with her family. She is letting others help. She is giving herself grace on the hard days and allowing joy in on the good ones.

“I used to think wellness was about controlling every aspect of my health,” Renee says. “Now I see it’s about showing up, fully, with the truth. That’s where the real healing happens.”