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Cynthia Spearman
Thirty- seven. Eleven. Nine. For most people, these are just numbers. For me, it is my exact age in January 2005, when I learned I had breast cancer: Thirty-seven years, eleven months and nine days. This is the exact age when my life changed forever. I started researching everything I could about this disease and the possible treatment options. During this quest for information, I was given the best advice from another survivor whom I had met shortly after my diagnosis: “Do your homework, pick your doctors, make your treatment decisions and go full throttle forward. Don’t look back and don’t have any regrets.”
Although I knew I had breast cancer, I did not know the extent of my disease. After surgery, the final diagnosis was stage IIIA breast cancer. Ten rounds of dose dense chemotherapy, six weeks of radiation, and participation in a clinical trial followed. Nine months later, in September 2005, I had completed active treatment and was dancing with NED (No Evidence of Disease).
However, my story really started nine years earlier when I asked my doctor about a small lump I had felt in my left breast. My doctor reassured me that it was nothing because I had no family history of the disease, none of my four older sisters had any breast issues, and I was “too young” for breast cancer. I trusted this doctor and went on living my life until that day in January 2005.
Today, I am living my “new normal” life and pursuing a career change from human resources to the allied health care field. Through this journey, I’ve learned to be my own healthcare advocate, to challenge my physicians and to live each day to its fullest. It’s now 4 years since I finished treatment, and I’m still dancing with NED! So, don’t forget to love, touch, and feel your boobs often!
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