We Tell Your Story
Part of Runway's mission is to honor the legacies and stories of those who have been impacted by breast cancer. Our blog page is dedicated to helping us share those stories.
Learn more about the importance and impact of our blog by watching the following video.
This year is the beginning, the year I am claiming myself back. I had reconstruction in January and it’s been a slow process for now but I’m finally getting back on my feet physically and starting to find myself again. She’s not the same woman, she’s definitely changed, but she’s better, braver, stronger, and most importantly thankful and grateful.
Breast cancer impacted me physically, emotionally, mentally, and financially. I was 57 and was in very good health. I had started a new job less than a year before my diagnosis. It began when I started feeling tired, weak, and achy all over. I didn’t have any of the typical symptoms of breast cancer. I was told by my primary care physician that it appeared I had fibromyalgia. That diagnosis just didn’t sit well with me. I pushed to have more tests done and was also due for my annual mammogram. After the mammogram, the cancer diagnosis came quickly and I became part of a club that no one wants to be member of.
There was no lump. I felt absolutely normal. I went in for my yearly mammogram in January 2022 and that’s when the doctors found calcium deposits. After an MRI and a biopsy, I got the call saying I had HER2 negative invasive lobular carcinoma of the right breast. I broke down immediately. I thought, ‘I can’t die, I have my little ones to take care of and I’m not going to leave them.’”
I was diagnosed with invasive lobular and invasive ductal carcinoma stage 2B in February of 2023. I had a double mastectomy with positive lymph nodes on April 11, 2023. From there I was put on medication to put me into menopause since my cancer was ER positive. I had severe reactions to the medications therefore I had to have my uterus and ovaries surgically removed.
I have no history of BC in my family. I had just finished my 15-month breastfeeding journey with my only son and was planning to have a second when I found the lump. It was a very aggressive HER2+ mainly driven cancer. I will never forget reading my diagnostics imaging – BIRADS 5. And all of a sudden, I wasn’t the typical young mom anymore. I was a cancer patient. I lost my hair, my boobs but I am still here.
Join our Mailing List!
Subscribe to keep up to date on all things Runway.
