Frannie McBrian’s Story

How has breast cancer affected your life?

“Breast cancer really has been a part of my life since I was a baby in my mom’s womb,” Frannie says.

Her grandmother died of breast cancer on Frannie’s due date, June 13. Frannie was born days later, on June 21. Her mother was grieving the loss of her own mother from cancer while carrying Frannie.

Then, when Frannie was 10 years old, breast cancer became part of her life in a new way. Her mother was diagnosed.

Frannie remembers the moment clearly: watching a movie, eating macaroni and cheese, sitting in the room as her mother told her and her brother the news.

For Frannie, it was a turning point.

“My immediate association was, well, that means she’s going to die,” she says.

Her grandmother had died of breast cancer, so as a 10-year-old, Frannie believed that was what breast cancer meant.

“Cancer was just this terrifying cloud,” she says.

What was it like to experience your mother’s diagnosis as a child?

At 10 years old, Frannie did not know anyone else whose parent had cancer.

She had questions, but she did not know where to ask them. 

“I didn’t know anyone who could relate to me in a way that felt familiar,” she says.

She remembers snapshots from that time: her mother recovering in bed, spending time at her grandparents’ house in Portsmouth, and wondering whether her mom was okay.

“Is she dying?” Frannie remembers thinking.

Now, as a therapist, Frannie can look back at that experience with a deeper understanding of how those memories shaped her.

“I wish that my 10-year-old self had some of the resources and the incredible opportunities that Runway gifts families and children with,” she says.

That is part of why Runway’s mission means so much to her. Frannie knows firsthand how deeply a parent’s diagnosis can affect a child.

 

How has breast cancer affected you personally as an adult?

As Frannie grew up, breast cancer continued to shape her life.

In her mid-20s, she had her first personal scare. Her husband found a lump, and Frannie went through biopsies, conversations, fear, and waiting. Ultimately, the lump was not cancerous, but the experience was terrifying.

Since then, Frannie has been followed closely as someone in a high-risk category. For a while, that meant MRIs and mammograms every six months. More recently, her care team started her on a new screening protocol.

Now, as a mother herself, Frannie thinks about breast cancer differently again.

She thinks about the little girl she once was when cancer became part of her reality. She thinks about how she would want to support her own child if breast cancer ever entered her immediate family.

“It has taken different shapes and taken on different forms as life circumstances have changed,” Frannie says, “but it’s a part of me.”

 

What has it meant to grow up alongside Runway?

Frannie first walked with Runway when she was 18 and in her first year of college. She remembers coming home for the show at the country club, walking alongside her mother and becoming part of a community that would remain in her life for years.

Now, nearly 20 years later, Frannie can see just how much has changed.

Runway has grown from a small event into an organization making a deep impact on families facing breast cancer, metastatic disease, and loss.

For Frannie, that growth is incredibly moving.

“It’s flipping the story of cancer on its head,” she says.

Cancer is still tragic and painful. But Runway brings something else into the room too: joy, connection, and color. 

“There’s this vibrant energy that is just palpable,” Frannie says. “The magic that it has is something that just can’t be described.”

Why is it meaningful to return for Runway’s 20th Anniversary

Returning for Runway’s 20th Anniversary feels deeply meaningful to Frannie.

Specifically, in the way Runway supports exactly the kinds of children and families she once wished she had known as a 10-year-old.

“To be able to be a part of that means so much to me in such a powerful, profound way,” she says.

This year is also personal because Frannie will return to the stage with her husband and baby.

Runway has been part of her life as a child, a young adult, a daughter, and now a mother. Standing on the stage with her own family is a full-circle moment.

We can’t wait to cheer on Frannie and her family as they take the stage!