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It Can Be Beat

26 YEAR SURIVIVOR!!!! At the age of 36, I was diagnosed with stage 2b, aggressive breast cancer, ER negative. I had 3 lymph nodes involved.

I rolled over on an area in my right breast that was sore. I immediately went to my doctor and he told me to go home and enjoy life as I was young and had no family history. I watched this lump grow quickly and went back to the same doctor. He finally sent me to a surgeon who told me I had breast cancer on my oldest daughter's 11th birthday. I was shocked, scared, and really angry at my trusted doctor who blew it off 5 months earlier. Treatment included a lumpectomy, CMF chemotherapy, and 6 weeks of radiation.

I got through it all with faith, family and friends. My biggest advice from my experience is to get EVERY lump out of your body, do not hesitate to get mental health help, and keep your faith strong. I was very stubborn and was determined to get through it without any antidepressants. BIG MISTAKE! I wasted many blessed days crying and depressed when I could have been enjoying life especially with my young children. I later worked for a mental health office and discovered how valuable and life-changing anti-depressants can be. I also prayed a lot and strongly believe that God was right with me through it all and cured me.

So 26 years later, I am cancer free. I am very blessed as I now have 4 grandchildren and another one due in July. This wretched disease can be beat. Keep the Faith!

Becky Aglinsky
Lake Wylie, SC

My journey!

I was devastated when I found a lump.
I decided to have the whole breast removed. I then started on Chemo. Tired but worse thing for me was losing my hair, tragic!
It was late 2005 and in 2006 I had planned to go to the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Australia. They were around the time where I finished the first course of chemo and started the second. My doctors said there was no reason I couldn't go so off I went. I was away on my own for the first two weeks as hubby was working, so went to Vancouver then Auckland to visit friends. I then drove down and crossed to the South Island taking in the sights. I flew to Melbourne and met by hubby, and realised that my hair had started to grow back! Saw the games then travelled to Perth and on to Hong Kong, then home. I felt tired for the first three days of the holiday but soon got my fitness back.
All through my illness I still did volunteer athletics coaching.I have since been very busy and went back to work full time, developed as a coach and got quite a bit more involved. I now have a large group of lovely athletes and I am developing my own fitness business for all abilities.( My illness has left me overweight and I used to be extremely fit so I'm working now to get some back). Part of this is some classes for breast care patients as I want to support others and I feel that with my experience and expertise can give something back for all the help and support I received.
I appreciate everything much more now. Eighteen months afterwards I went back into hospital and has reconstructive surgery, which was brilliant.i would recommend it. It took a while to get things looking right but definitely worth it. It gave me my confidence back. All through it, my hubby and family were really supportive and the breast care nurses were brilliant. I've come a long way from 2005.

Judith Gooding
Swansea, United Kingdom

Don't Ignore the Pain

I was first diagnosed at the age of 33 in August 2008. Stage II Breast Cancer, ER Positive and BRAC1 gene so I elected a double mastectomy. After surgery, receiving radiation, chemotherapy and then reconstruction surgery, my hair finally started growing back. In 2010, I received a NED (No evidence of disease)! During my treatment, I was laid off went back to college and graduated.
While working my dream job, in May 2011, my right lower thigh started hurting. I thought it was my sciatica because it hurt up into my lower back. I went to chiropractor for adjustments. The pain continued to get worse, I developed a serious limp but I continued to go to work. The last Saturday in July 2011, I brought my dog to the vet. When he crossed over in front of me, I stepped over his leash, my leg gave out, I fell and I heard a crunch. Adrenaline pumping I was able to get home safely, but soon started seeing stars and went to the ground. After regaining my marbles, I grabbed my husband's crutches and had someone take me to the emergency room. The MRI found a pathological fracture and peach size tumor (lesion) on my right femur. My femur was stabilized with a rod and screws. Before surgery, I cried because I couldn't believe I was going through this again. After radiation on my femur, my scans showed the cancer had spread to other bones, my spine, pelvis, ribs and skull. I had to start chemotherapy again and lost my hair again. I cried, the hair loss made it real. I have Stage IV Breast Cancer. I discovered there is NO cure but it's treatable. In September 2013, I was not in remission but my cancer was dormant (YAY!!). In Mar 2013, pain showed up again, in my upper femur and low back and scapula. Sure enough scans showed uptake in activity. I just finished radiation on those areas and feeling really good. I will continue to fight as long as God keeps me on this earth!

Tammy Pitre
Lake Charles, LA

This is my Bresast Cancer Story

I was diagnosed with type 3 late stage carcinoma breast cancer in 08/18/2011
I was in the car with my husband on our way home from the store when I got the call from my doctor! He than told my husband and I that I he is sorry to tell me that I have carcinoma late stage type 3 . And later that week my doctor called me back up to recommed a surgeon for me. That month my husband told his boss what is going so that he could take care of me. So his boss understood and laid my husband off so that my husband could help me out! My husband and son and my brothers and dad are very supporitve of all the stuff that I have gond through in my jounrey even though it has been really hard on them! I have learned that because of the anit hormone blockers that my chemo doctor suggested for me. Two of them caused me to have extreme bone and joint pain to the point where my husband would have to help me walk around and move! And those same pills caused me really bad nausa where it was hard to hold anything down! And than my chemo doctor suggested for me to take the anit hormone pills that do not cause pain! But it did cause me to have blurred vision in both my eyes and numbness on the right side of my face! And than I called up my chemo doctors office about this and they told me to go to the hospital! They told me that I had a mini stroke! And the doctor in the ER confirmed that the anti hormone pill that I took did cause me to have a mini stroke!

Jenny
Sandy, OR

It happened so fast

I turned 45 and got my letter in the mail from my GP for my free boob squash. I could have been one of these woman who looked at the letter and thought, I will get round to this one day, put the letter down and forgotton about it, but I am pretty vigilant when it comes to my health.

I was about to take my mum on a cruise from Auckland to Sydney and thought, ok, I dont want any bad news so I will book in for my mammogram after the trip. 4 days after returning, I went and had it done. The radiologist that did it said sometimes on your first mammograms they will do a call back just to double check, so if I did get a call, not to worry.

Two weeks after, sure enough I got a call to go back as they wanted to recheck things. Went in and had a hand job (excuse the expression), another mammogram and a scan. They reviewed these and I was then advised that I needed to have 2 biopsy's, one of each breast. I opted to have these both done at the same time so went back 2 days later and had both biopsy's done at once. The results of these were, the right breast was fine, nothing to worry about but the left had DCIS, but, there was another area in the left breast they wanted to do another biopsy on. This also came back as DCIS.

As I had DCIS in two places the area that had to be removed was around 4.5cm but with cancer they always take a wider path to esnure they get it all. This area then turned into a 6.5cm area which was out of their limit that they will do for a partial removal. I was then told that my only option was a full mastectomy of the left breast.

Within 3 weeks of hearing this news, I was in having a mastectomy and reconstruction. Lymph nodes were clear so no radiation or chemo required thank goodness.

Linda
Auckland, New Zealand

MY JOURNEY...

THE BEGINING OF MY JOURNEY WAS JANUARY 25TH 2014 I WENT FOR A MAMMOGRAM AND THE DR SAID HE SEEN SOMETHING IN THE IMAGES SO I WAS ASKED TO GO BACK TO GET SOME MORE IMAGES DONE...SO I WENT BACK ON FEBUARY 10TH 2014 THAT SAME DAY I HAD TO TEETH PULLED AND WENT TO GET MY IMAGES DONE THEY ALSO DID A ULTRA SOUND SO I WAS ALREADY IN PAIN FROM HAVING THE TEETH PULLED AND THE DR WANTED ME TO RETURN THE NEXT DAY FOR A BIOPSY BUT AS I LIVE A HOUR AWAY FROM MY DRS.OFFICE I TOLD HIM IT WAS KIND OF HARD FOR ME SO HE ENDED DOING THE BIOPSY THAT SAME DAY AND THEN WAS ASKED TO RETURN IN THREE DAYS FOR THE PATHOLOGY REPORT....WENT BACK ON THE 13TH OF FEBUARY AN THAT WAS THE DAY MY LIFE CHANGED I WAS TOLD I HAD BREAST CANCER 44 YEARS OLD AND I HAD ALOT OF THINGS JUST RUNNING THROUGH MY MIND WHAT ARE MY KIDS AND HUSBAND AND GRAND BABIES GONNA DO WITH OUT ME...WELL THEY TOLD ME IT WAS IN STAGE ONE SO I JUST STARTED PRAYING TO GOD TO HELP ME GET THROUGH THIS AND TO GIVE ME THE STRENGTH SO I HAD MY FIRST SURGERY (LUMPECTOMY) ON MARCH 19TH 2014 WHICH THEY REMOVED THE LUMP AND TWO NODES..WENT BACK TO SEE SURGEON ON APRIL 3RD FOR RESULTS FOR PATHOLOGY REPORT ON NODES AND CHECK UP..WELL I HAD GOT SOME MORE BAD NEWS WHICH THEY SAID ONE OF THE NODES WAS POSITIVE FOR CANCER SO THEY SCHEDULED ANOTHER SURGERY FOR APRIL 9TH 2014 AND WENT THROUGH THAT AND THEY REMOVED THE REST OF THE NODES AND THOSE CAME BACK NEGATIVE THANK GOD...SO NOW THE REAL REAL JOURNEY STARTS AS FAR AS TREATMENTS I HAVE TO DO 4 ROUNDS OF CHEMO WHICH I STARTED ON MAY 1ST AND THEN I WILL DO 30 ROUNDS OF RADIATION AND THEN TAKE A PILL...THANKS TO MY PRECIOUS GOD AND DRS.. MY FAMILY AND FRIENDS THAT ALL SUPPORT ME I KNOW I WILL GET THROUGH THIS...THANK YOU JESUS....

paula chavez
tulia, TX

It doesn't have to be a lump!

Woke up and there was a stain on my night gown, I dismissed it! Same thing the next day, but on the sheets too, brown and hard. I soon realised it was dried blood so took myself to the doctor who sent me that day for a mammogram. That was a Wednesday. By the Friday I was having a carbon trace put in and the following Tuesday I lost half my right breast having it confirmed it was cancer! It was far back against my chest wall and only 6mm long having already burst out of the mammary gland, but there was no lump to be felt. After more tests, the following Tuesday they took my lymph nodes and found the cancer had moved already. I had two small children and a husband at home and a rough journey ahead. Radiotherapy, Zolodex, Tamoxifen and a severe spiral into depression caused by the Zolodex, I was able I beat it! I tell anyone who will listen, I am proud of my battle and the winning of that battle! I am different, I know now that somethings are not worth worrying about, and that I am stronger than I ever knew.

That was 10 years ago this July, and today I wear the pink ribbon tattoo on my right shoulder to remind myself and everyone else, it doesn't have to be a lump!!!

Anonymous
Adelaide, Australia

My mom..My Shero

My mom is my Shero. The test is her testimony but not just hers. My mom is a strong woman of faith & for 49 years I have heard her confess her faith in our all knowing all seeing God. Even after being diagnosed with breast cancer that had already spread. Her testimony has been," God is faithful to keep his promises"....So today I salute my mom Geneva Yvette Mckinney Howard...The Ultimate Queen Warrior for Christ...love you mom
Humbly Submitted TJ

Teresa Johnson
Cahokia, IL

Kick cancer's butt!

I come from a family with a very long, vast history of cancer- especially breast cancer. And two amazing women in my family kicked breast cancer's butt!!! My grandmother, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in her late thirties, has now been cancer free for 30 years! And my cousin, who was diagnosed very young, only in her twenties, has been cancer free for more than 10! I'm proud of both of these beautiful fighters, and all of the rest of you fighters who are out there right now kicking breast cancer's butt. You are all beautiful, amazing women, and even without knowing you, I admire you for your strength, courage, and perseverance. I have faith in each of you and know that you will all beat this. You are WAY stronger than breast cancer, so continue to be the strong, beautiful, inspirational fighters you are, and kick cancer's a$$!!! <3

Cici
Detroit, MI

My cancer diagnosis I

I actually was scheduled for a breast reduction the week before Thanksgiving. Well that Monday I had to have a mammogram, my 1st one ever being I was only 37. I got a call Tuesday telling me to put my surgery on hold for further testing. I had my 2nd mammo & was feeling quite uneasy after a comment from the lady doing my mammo. That Thursday I get a call to be in my drs office that Friday for a biopsy. I can't explain the fear & thoughts that go thru your mind.
I had my biopsy & 3 days later got the dreaded call I wasn't wanting. 1st thing dr said was "we've caught it early & everything should be fine" I was numb. All I could think was what about my children, my husband & family? How could this happen? How does she know I will be ok? I was definitely in shock.
I had my double masectomy on January 14, 2014. The holidays we're emotional but I have an amazing family & friends that helped me to be strong. I never thought too negative but you definitely do have those dreaded thoughts. I just wanted it all to be over & ok. You stay strong bc your kids watch you or atleast I did or tried.
I've since had 3 surgeries, 3 hospital stays, picc line & most recent lost my right expander. Am I mad or sad? No, not at all, I'm blessed to still be here. I have a new outlook on life & will never be the same person I was before my diagnosis. My faith in God is even stronger now than ever !! I cherish each day & make many memories & love every moment. Good luck all survivors.

Lbusbey@gmail.com
Panola, TX