On Halloween night 2025, I felt a lump.

At the time, I never imagined that one small discovery would change my life forever.

On December 11th, I went in for a biopsy. Before the biopsy, the doctors were confident that there was nothing to be concerned about. They performed an ultrasound and didn’t see anything suspicious. I was told the lump was most likely benign and that I could come back in a few months to have it checked again.

But something in my gut told me not to wait.

I told them I wanted it removed as soon as possible. They explained that they would only remove it if I had a biopsy first.

Thankfully, I pushed for it.

Three days later, on December 15th, I received a phone call with the results. 

It was not the news I expected to hear.

I had invasive ductal carcinoma. I had breast cancer.

From that moment on, life became a whirlwind of appointments, blood tests, exams, scans, procedures, and conversations with my multidisciplinary team, medical oncologist, and surgical oncologist.

I was told that my cancer was triple-negative breast cancer, one of the more aggressive forms of breast cancer, which meant we needed to move quickly.

Just two days before Christmas, I had surgery and had a BioFlo port placed so I could receive my treatments. I also had another biopsy to determine whether the cancer had spread beyond my breast.

That biopsy was inconclusive because they weren’t able to get a sample from my lymph node. Because of that, my oncologist ordered a PET scan on January 1st to look for any signs that the cancer had spread throughout my body.

I was terrified.

I had been receiving one piece of bad news after another, and honestly, I was starting to lose hope.

Then, that same evening, my doctor called.

The cancer had not spread throughout my body.

There was possibly a small amount of involvement in the lymph node under my arm, but that was it.

We caught it early.

For the first time in what felt like forever, I had something to hold onto.

On January 8th, I started chemotherapy.

The next six months were some of the hardest months of my life.

There were days when I felt completely exhausted. Days when treatment took everything out of me. Days when I wondered how I was going to keep going.

But after just one treatment, we could already see the tumor beginning to shrink.

With every treatment that followed, the scans showed that my treatment plan was working.

It was working really well.

The treatments became harder, but knowing that the cancer was responding gave me the strength to keep moving forward. I had to stay positive. I had to stay hopeful. Most importantly, I had to trust God.

After chemotherapy was finally over, we did more scans.

Nothing showed any evidence of cancer.

But that still didn’t necessarily mean every cancer cell was gone. There could still have been microscopic cancer cells hiding in the tissue.

After carefully weighing my options, I decided to move forward with a lumpectomy.

On June 5th, I went into surgery.

A few days later, I received the news I had been praying for.

None of the samples showed any cancer.

My treatment had resulted in a complete response.

The cancer was gone.

My battle was over.

I WON.

A few weeks later, I began four weeks of radiation. It wasn’t easy, but I got through it.

I am continuing immunotherapy for the next four months, and when that chapter is finished, I will officially be done with all of my cancer treatments.

When I look back at everything that has happened, there are so many things I want people to know.

First, trust your gut.

If something doesn’t feel right, don’t ignore it. Keep asking questions. Keep pushing. Get the second opinion. Ask for the test. Advocate for yourself.

The doctors were ready to send me home and have me come back months later. If I hadn’t pushed for that biopsy, my story could have played out very differently.

Listen to your body.

Breast cancer doesn’t always look or feel the way we expect it to, and it doesn’t only happen to older women. Know your body. Pay attention to changes. Do your breast self-exams and get your recommended screenings.

You could save your own life.

Second, never stop fighting for yourself.

There will be moments when you’re scared. Moments when you’re exhausted. Moments when you wonder if you have enough strength left to keep going.

You do.

Take it one day at a time. You don’t have to have everything figured out. You just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other.

And most importantly, trust in the Lord.

There were so many moments when I didn’t understand why I was going through this. There were moments when I was scared and moments when I felt completely broken.

But I truly believe God gave me the strength to keep going when I didn’t think I had any left.

My faith carried me through some of the darkest days.

I also learned how important it is to surround yourself with people who understand what you’re going through. Along this journey, I met some incredibly strong women and men who became part of my support system. Having someone to talk to who has walked a similar road can make you feel a little less alone.

If you’re reading this because you’re going through cancer right now, please hear me when I say this:

You are not alone.

I know how scary that diagnosis is. I know how overwhelming the appointments, treatments, scans, and uncertainty can feel.

But remind yourself that this is a chapter—not the whole story.

This is temporary. This too shall pass.

Keep believing. Keep fighting. Keep hoping. Take it one day at a time, and on the days when you don’t feel strong, let the people who love you be strong for you.

Cancer may have started the fight…

but you get to decide how the story ends.

And as for me?

Cancer picked the wrong woman to mess with.

I fought. I prayed. I believed. I persevered.

And today, I get to say:

I WON. ❤