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When I received a phone call about an abnormality discovered during my mammogram in December 2016, I didn¡¯t think much of it. I was prone to getting fluid-filled cysts in both my breasts, and I¡¯d always gone in and had the cysts drained. But this mammogram was different: it showed a solid tumor in my right breast.

I went in for a biopsy, and the results left me in shock. I really didn¡¯t know how to accept my HER2-negative breast cancer diagnosis. Then I remembered my years as a single mother and the difficult months I¡¯d spent caring for my husband, who¡¯d died from colorectal cancer four years earlier.

From these experiences, I knew I had the strength to face any challenge. I just needed to have faith and do whatever needed to be done to survive. For me, that meant returning to MD Anderson. My late husband received amazing care there, so I knew I could trust the doctors and staff with my life.

My breast cancer treatment

In January 2016, I scheduled my first appointment at MD Anderson in Sugar Land, the MD Anderson location closest to my home. My first conversation with assured me I was in the right place. After she went through my treatment options, she looked at me and said, ¡°Leave this cancer to me. I¡¯m going to treat you and take care of you. I want you to live your life.¡±

When I started my chemotherapy regimen with Paclitaxel in March 2017, I did my best to keep my life as normal as possible. I scheduled my infusions on Fridays so that I could recover over the weekend and return to work the following Monday. And thankfully, my side effects weren¡¯t too debilitating ¨C just some skin darkening, altered taste buds and fatigue.

Sharing my breast cancer diagnosis with colleagues

I did lose my hair about a month into treatment, but I opted to wear a wig until I felt comfortable in my own skin again. After about three months, I¡¯d garnered enough strength to show up to work bald. Up until that point, no one knew that I had breast cancer.

Some of my co-workers asked me what was up with the new style. When I revealed that I was going through chemo, many of them said, ¡°Wow! We wouldn¡¯t have ever known!¡± They were all so encouraging.

Their support helped when I started my second round of chemotherapy infusions in late June. Even though I was receiving Adriamycin and cyclophosphamide infusions once every three weeks, this combination hit me much harder. I couldn¡¯t do anything for about four days after each infusion. I had fatigue and diarrhea, and I had no appetite. I also started experiencing neuropathy in my hands. Thankfully, Dr. Saleem prescribed me medication to ease those side effects.

Focusing on remain cancer-free

On Nov. 2, about a month after I finished my second chemotherapy regimen, I underwent a partial mastectomy with and breast reconstruction with . I started radiation therapy at the end of the year and was done by early February.

Now I¡¯m taking a preventive drug called Letrozole for the next five years, and I¡¯m in the process of joining a clinical trial that¡¯s studying whether taking a second preventive drug, called everolimus, delays a recurrence and improves the overall chances of survival in patients like me with HER2-negative breast cancer, as well as women with high-risk, HR-positive breast cancer.

I¡¯m hoping that this clinical trial and my renewed motivation to maintain a healthy diet and exercise regularly will ensure that I enjoy the rest of my life cancer-free. After all, that¡¯s what I set out to do when I received my diagnosis one year ago.

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