A month after my annual checkup, I discovered a lump in my breast. I was initially diagnosed with stage 3. triple negative breast cancer (a rare type that lacks receptors for estrogen, progesterone and the HER2 protein, making some treatments, such as hormone therapy, ineffective). I was 29, so this diagnosis was shocking – completely unbelievable. When I first discovered the lump, I wasn't worried that it was cancer; this thought never even crossed my mind.
Before this I had a cozy little life. I grew up in Belmont, North Carolina, just an hour away from where I live now. I graduated from college, got my first job, and met my husband, Andrew, here. We got a fluffy cat named Moo and I happily taught elementary school for about 10 years. Then my life completely changed.
After this initial diagnosis, I stopped working and underwent a year of chemotherapy, lumpectomy surgery, and radiation therapy. I went through this first round of treatment focusing on my goal of returning to normal life and leaving my diagnosis behind. Then, right after I finally returned to work, I relapsed. I found out I had a brain tumor and liver metastases and was then diagnosed with stage four breast cancer, also known as metastatic breast cancer (MBK).
In that moment, everything changed—again. I had to go back to treatment. My hair just grew back into a cute pixie cut, but I had to restart chemo so I lost my hair again. I had to leave my teaching job again. It was incredibly difficult. I remember the first time I realized that cancer treatment could define my entire life.
