Breast Cancer in my 30’s
Meet 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.”
Read MoreMeet the Models: Debbie First
Debbie First is a force. A powerhouse of a woman. She was one of Runway’s very first models back when we taped Christmas lights to the floor of a country club. And this year, for the 15th anniversary, she’s back.
Read MoreMeet the Models: Hannah Earle
Hannah Earle is living with metastatic breast cancer. In 2016, as a 31-year old mother of 2 young children, Hannah was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer. Her children were just 4 and 18 months old; she was in the thick of her world as a mom when cancer came roaring into her life and altered it forever. However, Hannah was steadfast that her diagnosis would not gravely affect the childhood of her two boys. You’ll come to realize this is an ever-present theme woven into the fabric of Hannah’s story.
Read MoreMeet the Models: Liz Mover
As an ICU nurse, Liz Mover was familiar with the hardships of devastating medical diagnoses. It wasn’t something, at age 34, she thought she would have to face, but when she found a lump in her breast and started experiencing arm pain, her reality quickly altered. After a mammogram and ultrasound, Liz read over her biopsy report and was able to determine she did indeed, have breast cancer. After the news in February of 2018, “it was a total whirlwind” of genetic counselors, oncologists, surgeons and more. Liz had a double mastectomy, port placement and four cycles of chemotherapy: “it felt like time had froze, but in reality it was still very much moving. I was so involved in making a plan, but as time passed I still had to figure out how to tell my children why I would be losing my hair and feeling crappy.”
Read MoreMeet the Models: Valerie Campbell
Val Campbell had a long day. It was Thanksgiving of 2016 and she had just spent the day eating and celebrating with family. She finally was able to crawl into bed late that night and much to her surprise, she felt a lump. She messaged her doctor and spoke with a nurse the next morning. “I went in on Black Friday and within a week, I got the call saying ‘it’s cancer.‘”
Read MoreMeet the Models: Melissa Eleey
“What I love about this group of women is that though breast cancer has affected us and our family’s so deeply, we also laugh a ton, joke around a lot and use it as fuel for positivity and to bring us joy.”
Read MoreMeet the Models: Dorothy Burnham
It was May of 2018, and Dorothy was nursing her infant while her two-year-old was playing with toy trucks at her feet. Dorothy noticed a lumpy area in her left breast. Totally surrounded by all things baby, and having experienced lots of complications nursing her first child, Dorothy assumed the lumpy area had to do with blocked milk ducts, mastitis, or some other breastfeeding condition.
Read MoreMeet the Models: Rebecca Melendez
While 2020 has been particularly difficult for many of us, Rebecca Melendez’s has been uniquely so. This year marked the tenth anniversary of her mother’s passing from breast cancer. That, combined with turning 35, “flicked a switch” within Rebecca that has set the course for much of her year. BRCA positive herself, Rebecca’s health reality consists of check ups (mammograms and MRI’s) every sixth months.
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