Meet the Models, New England: Deborah Williams
Deborah Williams is an ironman triathlete. It shows in her lifestyle: “I don’t even have a microwave, television, or use plastic.” Everything from her diet to exercise was nearly pristine, so breast cancer, any cancer really, was never on her radar. In February of 2014 however, she had hip flexor pain that persisted. When doctors couldn’t figure out the cause, Deborah advocated for an MRI. After returning from her summer ironman, doctors revealed there was a 9 millimeter tumor in her left femoral head and her femur was broken in three places. She received immediate surgery to fix her leg, which revealed breast tissue in her leg. This finding prompted follow up chemotherapy.
A whirlwind of a diagnosis, Deborah decided to put her case to good use. She was a college professor of nursing and used her own case for students to study all semester, ripping her wig off at the end revealing it was her own diagnosis they had been analyzing.
While things felt more stable post treatment, a year later the rod in her leg broke (later revealed to be defective titanium) and her femur shattered during surgery. She woke up to the news she most likely wouldn’t be able to walk normally again and would need adaptive assistance for life, on top of processing a metastatic breast cancer diagnosis. For Deborah, a lifetime athlete, “that simply wouldn’t do,” and she felt her life snap into perspective. She left teaching, focusing only on private tutoring, and began physical therapy five days a week, even after insurance wouldn’t cover it. Slowly, she improved and today she is even back on a bike and swimming, though running will not be in her near future.
For Deborah, this change in perspective means she lives in the moment a lot more than she did 10 years ago: “I see clearly the things I appreciate, things I have patience for and I am far less stressed about things than I was pre-diagnosis.” Today she continues to only private tutor students and took on dog walking (“great for my exercise!”) in her free time. She started a breast cancer support group when she couldn’t find one in her area and she serves on the Patient Advocacy Council at the hospital.
Living with metastatic breast cancer means an ever evolving relationship with her body. Indeed, after 7 years NED (no evidence of disease), scans in May revealed a low grade zero new cancer in her right breast, the first time any evidence of disease has been found in her breasts. Genetic testing revealed Deborah was positive for HER2 and BRCA genes, but this cancer was neither. It prompted her to seek a double mastectomy: “I am going flat- one and done. I am an A- cup size on a good day, I don’t need them back. Get them out. I am an athlete- it honestly benefits me to not have them.”
Deborah’s no nonsense attitude extends to how she seeks support from those around her. Her tribe includes very close friends and she advises anyone newly diagnosed to be up front and honest with their loved ones, especially when someone isn’t being helpful: “The amount of times people will make it about them saying, ‘my aunt had cancer!’ is frustrating. Everyone’s diagnosis and disease is different. Find those who truly support you and absolutely stay away from Dr. Google.”
Deborah is also keenly aware that life for a metastatic patient looks different than that of someone seeking a cure: “I cringe when people say- put up a good fight or battle. I am not at war or fighting with anyone. I am in conversation with my cancer.”