School Secretary Breast Cancer

They don't prepare you for all of the bills once you "Survive Stage III Breast Cancer."
You don’t have to be a smoker, drinker of alcohol beverages, have a history of “Breast Cancer”, nor do you have to be a carrier of the “Breast Cancer Gene” to end up with “Breast Cancer”. This has been a long and hard road. I will start this story by, saying “I Survived!!!!! I Survived!!!!!!

It started with a lump in my breast. I tell all women; to make sure to do yourself breast examination. I was diagnosed August 2011, eleven months after my Mother pasted away.  I was diagnosed with "Stage III Breast Cancer" and I inherit my young brother.  He was in his last year in high school.  Therefore, I had the task of making sure he would get back and forward to school.  I also made sure that he graduated from high school.  That is what my parent would have wanted me to do.  So, I did not tell my youngest brother, I was sick until I was finish with my treatment.  I did not want him to feel like he was going to lost another close family member, when he had losses both of his parents.   I had the hard task of telling my (12) year old daughter. “I had Invasive Stage III Breast Cancer”. I didn’t have a clue on how to tell her this… Dr. Hampton comforts me and helps me to let my daughter know. She also try to prepare me for the journey, I was about to bark upon. But, nothing or no one could prepare me for this… Within 1 week, I was in treatment for Chemo.

It was very difficult for me. I watch my hair fall out clumps, so I decided to get the rest of my hair shaved. It was doing something to watch my come out in clumps, because my hair was my crown and glory. My breast was also a big part of whom, I was. Then, I realize my hair and my breast do not define who I am.

We started with chemo, and then they remove the lump from the breast. Then, I found another lump in my other breast. I prayed, and prayed; then I decide to get both of my breast remove, which is a double mastectomy. I thought to myself after, I stop crying. Okay, maybe this won’t be so bad. But, I was kidding myself. At this point, I was devastated… I was extremely sick from the chemo. I had made it to a point in my life; where I thought. I would never be knocking at “Death Door”, but there I was. I was in so much pain from the many surgeries and so sick from the chemo. Just trying to set on a toilet set was painful. I was delusion at one point, and all I could do was cry.

I didn’t think, I could make it there radiation. The radiation therapy burnt so badly it was horrible. I remember being afraid to go to sleep, thinking I wouldn’t wake up and leave my daughter a motherless child. When, I did get to sleep. I had a dream my parents came to me. I was so happy to see them, we talk for a while. But, they told me, “No daughter, we miss you; but it is not your time yet. You have to go back and live for your daughter and yourself. And, we mean to really live your life. So, I wake up the well to fight and live.

I feel like, God gave me the strength and the will to live. Because, I am a single mother. I can’t begin to put in words how I had to her prepared my poor daughter for so many different serenity.

And with everything going on; my poor daughter ended up in the hospital have emergency surgery to remove her gall bladder, having a stent place inside of her and then having the stent removed. She was also diagnosed with scoliosis; she has yet to have to surgery for this issue; because they did not want to do the surgery on her back while I was doing the chemotherapy.

Now, my bills are more than; I can handle.  No one told me about all of the medical bills and bills to continue to roll in along with medical expense.   No one told me about all the pain you deal with everyday and the medication you have to take for the rest of your life.  


Here a little poetry, I wrote.


You are a beautiful lair.
You came like a thief in the night with no scent or awareness.
You are a beautiful lair lurking like a single bright red rose in the dark blackness of night.
Sweeping through the crisp cold air like the black plague.
You are a beautiful lair.
You are hated for the youth and life you steal.
You are a beautiful lair.
You are selfish and I wish you were never born.
You have sucked the life from me and many more.
You ugly in so may way.
You are an unbeautiful fact of my life.
You are a lie from the pit of hell.
Some people call you Cancer.
I call you death and you can’t have me yet.
I won’t go without a fight.


Written By: Ms. Tina White


As a family we just wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone who has shared our story, donated, or sent messages of encouragement. We particularly love all the survivor stories - we are filled with hope! We are truly overwhelmed by the support and kind words that have been flooding in from across the globe!