It's that time of year again, and I'm participating in The Ride for Roswell on June 22nd! I'll be participating in the prestigious "Peloton Ride" on the evening prior from Roswell campus to UB. I'll be missing my favorite riding buddy again this year, but he’ll be with me in spirit.
My team logo was “updated” a few years ago when I added a lime green ribbon in support of my amazing DAD who was treated for, and remission from, mantle cell lymphoma. He did well with a stem cell transplant at Roswell in the fall of 2020, and continued with maintenance chemotherapy to stay healthy and cancer-free. With the biggest broken heart, I'm saddened to say that he passed away from COVID related pneumonia in February 2023.
2023 brought more surprises and tears when I found a lump at my mastectomy site in August. Invasive carcinoma. I had a chest wall excision and partial axillary dissection which removed the tumor and 9 lymph nodes. None of the lymph nodes were cancerous, but the tumor was aggressive enough that I needed chemotherapy. I finished my last round of chemo just before Christmas, and have since started radiation that I will finish the week of the ride!
Onwards and upwards!
There has been so many tears, so much fear, sadness and anger over the years with what seems like endless stories of friends and family being diagnosed with cancer. But there has also been strength, love and a true will to live. I'm thankful for Roswell, doctors, friends, family and our gracious God. Cancer has not been kind to my family, but research and medicine has saved our lives....truly, SAVED OUR LIVES.
My story, as many of you well know, goes something like this:
I had my yearly OBGYN appointment in July 2017 and my doctor wrote me a script for my first mammogram. She was sending me at age 35 instead fo the recommended age 40 because of my family history of breast cancer (my grandmother and my aunt). I waited until September, since that's when I had a day off from work, and off I went. I went to a local imaging center and had my baseline 3D mammogram. That was September 13, 2017.
I was told to come back in 6 months for a follow up mammogram. I had an area of "microcalcifications", and the radiologist wanted to image the area in 6 months to be sure nothing had changed. For some reason, I wasn't ok with waiting 6 months, and my OBGYN agreed that this probably warrunted a biopsy. She gave me a list of places I could go for a second opinion and biopsy, and I chose Roswell.
It took me about a month to get an appointment at Roswell, since the first imaging center said my area of concern was "probably benign". I was seen by a surgical oncologist on a Tuesday, had my biopsy that Thursday, and Friday, October 13th received a phone call that I had cancer. Cancer. Ugh, still makes me shiver.
The following weeks gave way to more appointments, tests, MRI, genetic testing...
I was diagnosed with Ductal Carcinoma In-Situ, Stage 0. Stage 0, I'm lucky. My MRI revealed a very large tumor in my left breast (from my nipple to my chest wall) and a "questionable" area in my right breast. Unfortunately, due to the size of the tumor in my left breast, I had no choice but to have a mastectomy.
And that was my first dance with the devil. Apparently I was such a good dancer that he invited me to tango. Round two was August of 2023 that I wrote about earlier.
Donations come in all forms, and all are welcome - prayers, thoughts, good vibes and, of course, monetary donations. Know that all those things go to a great cause. Cancer research sure hits close to home for me and my family.