Rosie

My girlfriend says I am the poster child for breast cancer since I talk to women in stores, at the gym, in church, etc, about getting their mammograms.  It doesn’t bother me to tell people that my breasts are fake. It’s a great way to educate women.

How were you diagnosed?

You see, when we first moved to Florida in 2015, I wanted to give back as a thank you that I never had breast cancer.  Back when we lived in New York, I had my first needle biopsy.  My mammogram showed a dark spot on my left breast, so they wanted to check it out.  It was benign, so I was thankful.  We moved to North Carolina.  I was told that I had dense breasts.  Most of the time, I would have to go back for a second mammogram since they saw some dark spots. After 3 years of this, my OB/GYN felt a lump & told me to see a breast surgeon.  She did an ultrasound on my left breast.  She wasn't sure what it was & said we could do a wait-and-see or do a lumpectomy.  It would be my choice.  I am not a wait-and-see person, so I chose the lumpectomy.  It was benign.  I was very thankful.

 Six months later, they saw something in my right breast.  I had a needle biopsy which was also benign.  That's why when we moved into a new development, Indigo in Lakewood Ranch, Florida, I wanted to start a team.  I name the team, Indigo C.R.E.W.: Cancer Research Everybody Wins.  I was captain for 2years.  We started with 12 people & ended up with 30 when I turned the Captain's duties to a husband/wife team.  She was a breast cancer survivor.

 Then Covid hit & the world just stopped being normal.  They did walks for causes online.  It's not quite the same. When I was able to go to mammograms again, they found a dark spot.  A needle biopsy was done in my right breast.  They found Atypical lobular hyperplasia.  They told me it wasn't cancer but it could turn into cancer.  My girlfriend who is a nurse & is also a breast navigator(a term I had never heard before) explained that if cancer was a ten, I was a 5.  It would never go back to normal, it could stay a 5 or it could turn to become breast cancer.  She told me to go to Moffitt since it was one of the best cancer hospital in the United States.  Looking into it, I discovered it is number 5 in the top 10 hospitals in the US.  So I went.  My breast surgeon, Dr. Hoover. told me in looking at all my records & discs with two other radiologists, they said I was at a higher risk of getting breast cancer than most women.

 She would do a lumpectomy, but she first wanted to do a breast MRI.  With my history, she wanted to see what else might be going on in my right breast.  If it was clear, she would proceed with the lumpectomy.  When we did the breast MRI, they did see a dark spot in a different space from the Atypical lobular hyperplasia.  So they did a MRI needle biopsy.  That was when they found the breast cancer.  

How did you choose a mastectomy, lumpectomy, or other option? If mastectomy, what reconstruction did you choose, if any?

 She gave me 3 choices of what I could do.  The first was two lumpectomies since they were in 2 different parts of my right breast.  I would have to have chemo or radiation.  I would also have mammograms every 6 months & 6 months breast MRIs.  This would go on for 5 years.  The second choice was a mastectomy on my right breast.  The third choice was a double mastectomy with reconstruction.  She also said that she had a feeling I had already made my choice.

 She was correct.  I had made my choice back in North Carolina with all my breast issues going on.  I had told my husband, Jim, that if any of the results were malignant, I would get a double mastectomy.  Jim asked if he had any say about this.  I said that he could give me his opinion but no it was my choice.  At my age, 65, I didn't need my breasts & I would get reconstruction.

So surgery was scheduled & I proceeded to tell family & friends.  When I told Anita she asked what I decided.  I told her double mastectomy.  She was so glad because she told me of 3 girlfriends that had passed from breast cancer that didn't get double mastectomies.  I know that one of them was your Mom.

What other treatment did you choose?

What key milestones or memories hold the most significance?

I am a breast cancer survivor of 3 years.  I had a double mastectomy in August, 2021.  I had the surgery done at Moffitt Cancer Hospital in Tampa, Florida,  I consider myself blessed that I was so close to a hospital dedicated to all types of cancer .  Their doctors, nurses, & staff are so dedicated & caring.  It is a one-stop shopping cancer facility.  I was able to have my reconstruction done there & they were able to do nipple-sparing reconstruction on December 6, 2021.

What advice do you have for other women?

Since my surgery, 2 of my friends had their breast cancer come back.  They had lumpectomies a number of years ago. This time, they had to get double mastectomies. 

Within the last 1 1/2 years, 2 of my friends, in their 60's had lumpectomies done because their doctors said the lump was small so mastectomies were not necessary.  I tried to explain my was small too, but I didn't want the chance that the cancer could come back.  I am not sure why doctors are pushing lumpectomies for women in their 60's.  I am not sure if the insurance companies are pushing this issue.

I was going to be a mentor for the American Cancer Society. They would pair me up with a woman who was just starting her breast cancer journey. I was so excited about doing this. But then I read the rules I had to follow & I knew I couldn’t do it. One of the rules is I could not talk about why I chose a double mastectomy or influence their decision. I don’t agree with that, but I don’t make the rules.

What is the silver lining in your journey, if any?

Summarize your journey in three words!

What else do you want to add?

I lost my sister-in-law to breast cancer in June. She had a lumpectomy in 2019. When she heard I had breast cancer in 2021, she called me. She said she wished she knew what I knew & would have chosen differently. She said every 6 months, as it gets closer to the mammogram or breast MRI, she gets tense & wonders if the other shoe is going to fall. Well, it did in June of 2023. It was a fast-growing cancer & it spread too fast. I keep thinking that if she had the double mastectomy, would she still be here. She was my brother-in-law’s wife.

 The following year I walked in the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk by the American Cancer Society.  It was held at Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota, Florida.  I was in the Survivor Group photo & walked with one of my good friends.  In 2023, I walked with 2 more friends.  This year I am resurrecting a team that I started in 2016.

  So my team for Making Strides Against Breast Cancer is walking on Saturday, October 19th.  We are selling paper ribbons for people to give a donation & write their name or a name of a friend or family member that has cancer.  These will be put up in our clubhouse.  I thought that if you could send a box of goodies(Anita showed me one you sent for a silent auction) those who donate would get a raffle ticket for the goodie box.  On Friday, October 18th, we would pull a ticket to see who wins it.