Our very brave Mary, Mother, Mother-in-law, Mamo, aunt, sister, all the names, has recently been diagnosed with DCIS (stage 0) Ductal Carcinoma In Situ of the left breast. As a family, when we all heard it was stage 0, we sighed in collective relief. This should be a quick fight, and we are all here to cheer on and love Mary through it. A quick surgery called a partial mastectomy would take place in late June. The doctor would go in and remove a small piece of tissue that contained the cancer, and it would be over. Surgery went well. Mary made a speedy recovery and was ready to face a short bout with Radiation. But, at her follow up appointment, the doctor gave her some disheartening news. He did not get all of the cancer out. There were not clean margins in the sample. With the cancer being stage 0, the mammogram did not show all of the cancer in the screening. He would have to go back in during a second surgery and get more tissue to get the rest out.
A month later, a second surgery, Mary once again handled it like a champ and made a quick recovery, but at the second follow up appointment, it was like a bad dream that replays over and over...The doctor did not get all of the cancer and get clean margins. Mary would need a third surgery. However, this time, the doctor recommended a full mastectomy of the left breast.
With her family rallying around her, Mary made the choice to go through with the third surgery. In early August, she had her left breast removed and, while emotionally it was hard, she physically healed quickly and even gets to skip on radiation due to the whole breast being removed. So, there was a small silver lining there with not having to go through radiation.
Now we are in September. It has been a fast and furious summer of doctor appointments and hard choices, but if anyone knows Mary, she can handle all of the hard things thrown her way. As her family supports her through this journey, we have all decided to walk in the More Than Pink Walk in her honor. We are asking our friends and family to help us fight the battle against breast cancer by donating to our family team. We never dreamed that anyone close to us would be going through such a hard ordeal facing breast cancer. While every survivor has their own personal journey, Mary's journey has been unique to her. Our family hopes that all of her fighting has not been in vain as she heals and is now considered "Breast Cancer Free". Support Mary and her family as they walk for the first time with this beautiful community and help fund research.
This year, we joined the Komen community and registered for the Susan G. Komen MORE THAN PINK Walk. We are dedicated to Komen's mission of ending breast cancer forever, and we need your help. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation today in support of our fundraising efforts.
Your support helps us get one step closer to a world without breast cancer. Funds raised help support breakthrough research and provide assistance to those facing breast cancer today who need our support. Whether it’s emotional support via Komen’s helpline, financial support through Komen’s financial assistance program, or navigation services to break down barriers to care, Komen will be there for them.
Ending breast cancer needs all of us, and your generosity can make a real difference. Together, let’s show breast cancer patients there’s a whole community standing by their side.
Will you please join me in this fight by making your donation today?
