Help Brianna Through Her Cancer Journey

Hey, guys! I’m Brianna, I’m 32, & I was recently diagnosed with stage 1 triple-negative breast cancer.

Rewind back to early October; I accidentally found a lump in my left breast. I’ve never really remembered to do the self-breast checks, but I obviously knew: lump = bad. I called my gynecologist the next day to make an appointment for a breast exam. One week later, I was in the office & after the exam, I was told it was “probably nothing,” but that we could schedule an ultrasound & possible mammogram for the following week, “for my peace of mind.”

The next week comes & I go in for the ultrasound. After that, they decided the mammogram was necessary. After the mammogram, the radiologist came in to tell me I should “work for them” because they don’t know how I even found this lump. He also stated that it was “probably a benign tumor,” but said I could request a biopsy for (once again) my peace of mind.

One week later, I’m back in the hospital undergoing a biopsy to test the lump. After that, I wait. Now mind you, this entire time I had everyone around me telling me it was gonna be fine, gonna be negative, nothing to worry about; so I started to let myself believe that. The weekend passes, & I’m anxiously waiting for my results. I was told they could possibly be accessed online before I even heard from a doctor, so of course I was checking every hour. I finally got a text that the results were in. I sat there with my phone in my hand for a moment. Part of me was too nervous to open it. The other part of me was ready to see that it was nothing & everything was good & normal & I could move on with my life.

And then I read my results.

Fast forward to today, November 1st, 2024. Within these last three weeks, I’ve had a meeting with a surgeon, with an oncologist, & with a cancer team specialist. I’ve had surgery already to put a med port inside my chest to start chemotherapy on the 11th. My cancer is considered triple-negative, which means it won’t respond to hormones anymore & chemo is needed first to try to shrink the tumor before taking it out. I will undergo 6 months of chemo before the surgery, in which I was told I will lose my hair. I also did genetic testing to see if I have a possible gene that pre-exposed me to this cancer. If that is the case, a double mastectomy will likely take place, so the cancer cannot come back again. This chemo will also take away my ability to have any further children. I can’t begin to describe my sadness right now.

I am the only providing parent for my child. I am currently on leave from work so that I can start treatments in the next week. FMLA will save my job for me, but money won’t be coming in for a little while.

If you’re able, & have it in your heart, we’d appreciate any donations given. That being said, please don’t feel obligated. We’re grateful for kind words just as much. I can say, though, that any funds collected will go toward bills such as rent, water, & heat. They’ll also help keep food on the table during this time, & ensure my child still has everything he needs while I’m not working.

Thank you if you read this entire thing. God bless. <3