Michelle
“
Funding is essential. Awareness is essential. Understanding that a metastatic diagnosis doesn't mean you're facing an immediate death sentence is important.
”
I'm a cancer thriver. Diagnosed in 2013 with an MRI at the age of 49! I was told that I had a 5 centimeter, at least, tumor and positive lymph nodes, after being given the all-clear just 2 months before by the mammography and ultrasound team at another hospital. A PET scan showed I had metastases to my spine. No curative treatment for me. No surgery was recommended other than a hysterectomy and oophorectomy. Then I was told I have a chronic disease.
And seven years later... after multiple treatments, some of them new and targeted, some of them old standbys, I'm still here. But only because of those new treatments, blended in with the old, I'm still working part-time and living my life, watching my kids grow up. We need to keep on working to get new treatments out there for people with metastatic breast cancer. There's still no cure, but we're working towards getting better long term survival, and better quality of life. Better quality of life means more of us can contribute positively to society. Research needs to continue towards finding and improving on existing novel drug classes, that yield better tolerated, longer-lasting results. Research on treatment combinations with new drugs, some targeted, some older, and long standing to get better outcomes needs to continue.
Funding is essential. Awareness is essential. Understanding that a metastatic diagnosis doesn't mean you're facing an immediate death sentence is important. We can live and thrive. We just need to do the work.
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