I am a breast cancer survivor. I never thought I would be, as no one in my family had breast cancer. Heart disease was the family curse. But there's always a first, and that was me. I was diligent, screened every six months, sure I’d catch anything early. You’d think that would be enough, right? It wasn’t. There are things about breast cancer I
didn’t know then. That’s why we have Breast Cancer Awareness Month, because 1
in 8 women will be diagnosed.

Let me start with this: when caught early, the survival rate is amazing—over 95%. But catching it isn’t always simple.

Breast cancer comes in many forms:

• Estrogen/Progesterone Positive (ER+)
• Ductal (the most common)
• Lobular (harder to catch, second most common—this is the one I had)
• HER2+
• Stages 0-4
• In situ (earliest stage, hasn’t spread, Elle Macpherson’s case)
  

I was ER+ invasive lobular, stage 2B. The tumor was large but hadn’t spread far. I had micro-invasion in two lymph nodes, which is usually a negative sign, but my team wasn’t taking any chances. Initially, I thought they'd just remove the tumor, do some radiation, and I’d be back with new breasts. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

Even after a low Oncotype score and second opinions at MD Anderson, they laid it out for me: I had a monster tumor. We had to throw everything at it. The mammogram missed my 10 cm tumor—for years—because I had dense breasts. If you have dense breasts, regular mammograms can be useless. Push for an ultrasound, and don’t back down.

I found my tumor doing a self-exam. It felt like a hard pebble, growing over time. When I finally convinced my OBGYN to order an ultrasound, they still made me do another mammogram first—which,
again, showed nothing. But there it was on the ultrasound screen: my not-so-little monster.

What followed was a whirlwind: genetic testing, MRIs, biopsies, PET scans, a double mastectomy. I had 3-4 doctor’s appointments every week for the first six weeks. Then came chemo every three weeks, steroids the day before, hydration the day after. It was brutal. Bloody noses, rashes, aches, and, of course, hair loss—that one hit the hardest. My immune system collapsed, leading to an infection that landed me in the hospital for seven days.

Oddly enough, those seven days felt like a break. No work, my kids even spent the night. It was almost a vacation—except for the needles and the sepsis.

Then came radiation, another infection, and four more surgeries. From November to February of 2023, I had surgery every month. I was determined to reclaim my health and reconstruction. I had a man from a business group say to me, “Why so many surgeries just for boobs?” It wasn’t just about the breasts—it was about feeling feminine again. Reconstruction is not the same as augmentation. Be careful what you wish for.

My last surgery was in August 2023, but the journey didn’t end there. I’m on medication for the next 10 years, taking tests and scans every few months. And every time, I’m scared. I’ve had to slow down, learn to breathe, and make decisions I never thought I was strong enough to make.

I’m rebuilding my life, choosing to live on my terms. Breast cancer is terrifying, but the other side of it is freedom.
And I’ve reclaimed mine. I Found my FREEDOM !