Danielle
August 2020, with a sheer glance in the mirror I noticed a red dot on my nipple, my life has never been the same.
I placed Aloe Vera on it, however, it never went away. Panic set in upon completing a self-exam, I found a lump, which prompted me to call my doctor. A mammogram was ordered then a biopsy. In a room full of strangers, there was no husband, or children to call.
I asked them what they saw. Calcification behind your nipple. Calcification? I asked if I had breast cancer. They couldn’t tell me. The next morning MyChart alerted me to my results. Malignant. I was perplexed. I eat right, and practice yoga, how did I get breast cancer? I learned you never win at the breast cancer guessing game. I needed a mastectomy, and devastation set in.
I began to grieve my breast as I always pictured myself nursing if I had children. You always hear women fighting for their husbands and children. What about the single woman whose future is left in the balance, who fights for her?
December 2022, while in the shower I noticed 3 lumps in my breast. This couldn’t be. I couldn’t shake the feeling. I made an appointment. I just got accepted into a doctoral program so my focus was on that. At the appointment, I looked at them, and I just said it. I already know, my cancer is back.
I got the official details “chest wall reoccurrence.” This time, I needed chemo. I am without a breast, I lost my hair, and have a roadmap of scars.
