Breast Cancer in my 30’s
Meet the Models, SoCal: Aidan Morris
Aidan Morris knew she would get breast cancer. Despite being BRCA negative, she had a strong feeling for years that she would be diagnosed, so much so that she was paying out of pocket for mammograms since the age of 27. Though she did have family history- her aunt’s diagnosis at 75 and mom around 60- Aidan’s proactivity was based off her strong inkling. Her relentlessness would pay off, when at age 34, a mammogram revealed breast cancer.
Read MoreMeet the Models, SoCal: Ada Pham
Three years ago Ada Pham was in her elementary school classroom when she got a call from her doctor telling her she had breast cancer. Looking back, she laughs at the date: Friday, September 13, 2019. After a cyst on her right side prompted a mammogram, stage 0 breast cancer was found. The early stage meant she had time to consider her treatment options, but she endured countless tests and screenings in the weeks after diagnosis. Living in Hawaii at the time, Ada had to face those weeks alone because her family resides in California: “I had to face a lot of it on my own, which was hard.”
Read MoreMeet the Models: Lisa Hennessy
Lisa Hennessy did not think twice about breast cancer in her thirties. There was no family history, but one day her 39 year old cousin called her up to tell her she had breast cancer. Lisa was shocked, but immediately began to advocate for herself with doctors. She asked her OBGYN several times if she should be tested, but given that she was 34, her doctors did not think testing was necessary. Shortly after having her third child, Lisa noticed what she thought, at the time, to be a blocked duct. Doctors agreed to screen it to be safe. On March 1, 2017, doctors alerted Lisa that she had HER2 invasive ductal carcinoma that had already spread to her lymph nodes. Lisa notes, “I immediately went into mode” and, given the aggressive nature of the cancer, on March 31st she began treatment.
Read MoreMeet the Models: Kristin Bahny
Kristin Bahny is very familiar with cancer. She lost her father to colon cancer and her mother is a two time breast cancer survivor. It meant that cancer, for her and her brother, was always front of mind. Given her mother’s older age when diagnosed with breast cancer, Kristin wasn’t too worried when she found a lump. She did however, bring it up to her doctor, who suggested more testing. She notes, “I was in denial because my mom was so much older when diagnosed. Up until the minute they told me, I was convinced it wasn’t cancer. I should have, but I didn’t see it coming.” Indeed, at 34 years old Kristin had breast cancer.
Read MoreMeet the Models: Rebecca Kitchen
Rebecca Kitchen was on her way to urgent care when she decided to stop home for a quick shower. While showering she noticed a lump in her breast. Not thinking much of it, she brought it up to the urgent care doctor just in case. He too believed it to be a cyst, or something minor given Rebecca’s young age of 30. To be safe he sent her for a mammogram and ultrasound, both of which came back inconclusive. Three biopsies later, Rebecca was diagnosed with stage three ductal carcinoma breast cancer. It came as a complete shock: “it was so far outside the realm of possibilities for me. I would never have even thought it was possible.” Indeed, Rebecca had no family history and later genetic testing would reveal she also had no precursors.
Read MoreMeet the Models: Amy Rigard
“Breast cancer changed my life completely and forever.”
Read MoreMeet the Models: Cassandra (Cassy) Villalta
Cassy Villalta beams with positivity. One would never know the journey she has been on in the past decade. At just 35, with a 3 and 5 year old at home, Cassy was diagnosed with grade 3 ductal carcinoma. She would go on to have a lumpectomy, chemo, radiation and immunotherapy. It was grueling schedule, but Cassy remained upbeat throughout: “as long as it was fixable, I kept a smile on my face.” Her main priority was her children and ensuring their lives were uninterrupted by her diagnosis. She remains steadfast in her motivation to have her children’s memories of growing up not be tainted with images of her sick.
Read MoreMeet the Models: Joelle Lieman
For years Joelle Lieman diagnosed women with lumps and bumps. As an OBGYN, she was familiar with the difficulty of handing out scary news. She never anticipated it would happen to her, but at 39 years old she found a lump in her breast. Her husband encouraged her to use her diagnosing experience to keep a cool head: “he said, ‘what would you tell your patients?’ to which I responded, ‘there is a low chance that at 39 it’s cancer.’”
Read MoreMeet the Models: Kathryn Selinga
At 31 years old Kathryn Selinga was diagnosed with Thyroid Cancer. It was a shocking diagnosis. Very privately, she received treatment and attempted to move on with the rest of her life. After all, she was in her young thirties and was about to buy her first home with her husband. The universe, however, had other plans and at 34 years old, Kathryn was diagnosed with breast cancer.
Read MoreMeet the Models: Jillian Miller
“the world portrays breast cancer as THE cancer to get. Get a t-shirt, a ribbon and you’re good to go. So I was like alright, lets go, let’s do this thing.”
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