The Diagnosis

Breast cancer does not define me! I was diagnosed 12/3/2019 with stage 2 HER2+ Er/Pr (weakly positive) breast cancer. The diagnosis was shocking and I knew I’d never be the same again.

My Blessing

I am a board certified podiatrist in private practice. I was blessed with the benefit of having my colleagues treat me. They looked at it from a different perspective as it was “very personal”.

The icing on the cake was having a female team of smart and dynamic physicians such as my surgical oncologist, my medical oncologists, my hematologist , my interventional radiologist and my OB/GYN who I’ve known since our days at “The U”!

My Timeline (2020)

I had 6 cycles of TCHP ( taxol, carboplatin, herceptin and perjeta) chemotherapy. It was successful in shrinking the breast tumor and I was scheduled to remove what remained.

I celebrated my milestone 45th birthday virtually with family and friends. Immediately after, I took myself( as we were in the beginnings of COVID) for my sentinel node dye injection to prepare for surgery the next day.

I had lumpectomy for the affected breast with a fat graft May18th one day before my birthday!

I completed 21 sessions of radiation.

Five sessions of IV hormonal therapy followed until December.

On December 7th, I had my final lumpectomy with a fat graft for the other breast as a non cancerous mass was seen on my scans.

As a result, I’m passionate about sharing my journey via my social media platform by empowering my sisters and brothers in the breast cancer community.

From products to make us feel beautiful, to interviews with oncologists, to questions to ask our doctors to my speaking engagements… grab your favorite beverage for Talks with Dr D!