My Story

I found out I had breast cancer one month after the unexpected death of my fiancé. I have never been so stunned and scared in my life!! I had never had a mammogram until this one (and I know I should have done it years ago,) so when they said they found something I figured they wanted me back because there was no previous one to compare it to. I had to have a biopsy done, and it came back that I had cancer. Boy! When a doctor says that word….cancer…it is like all of the oxygen has been sucked out of the room, isn’t it!! I did not think I had the strength and energy to go through treatments; I was still grieving over the loss of Brent! How can I possibly do this too? I feel so blessed that I met the criteria to have the MammoSite 5-Day Targeted Radiation Therapy. As soon as I heard about it, I researched it on the internet and quickly decided this was the option for me! I liked the idea of targeted radiation, but the biggest deciding factor for me was 5 days of treatment instead of 5 – 7 weeks of treatment!! Count me in! I can do that! I had so much to do the next couple of weeks preparing for treatment, it is all a blur. I just tried to be wherever I was supposed to be! You have to go to Nuclear Medicine, to have dye injected to track your lymph nodes so they can determine which one is the sentinel lymph node, then you go for the lumpectomy to remove the cancer, and you have a balloon inserted into the area. The balloon is connected to a catheter that stays in place during the week of radiation. You go to the cancer center twice a day (six hours apart) for 5 days, and the balloon is removed with your final radiation treatment. I had no pain during this time; all I had was tiredness after the second dose of each day. It was so easy, I almost felt bad telling women at the breast cancer survivor meeting about it! Many of them have been through such an awful time with their cancer, and here I am telling them “it was a breeze!” I have the distinction of being the first woman to have this procedure performed in Madison County, IN. The Cancer Center at Saint John’s Hospital was so professional and compassionate; and they worked very hard to get this procedure brought to this area, I can never thank them enough! My priorities are different now, and I thank God for every day I can have!

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