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Dear family and friends,
I have started this fundraiser for my cousin, Jenn Pruett Brooks and her family. Jenn, a young mother with a five-month old baby, has been diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer. She’s currently recovering from a double mastectomy surgery performed in August. In mid-September, she will begin an aggressive 7-month schedule of chemotherapy followed with radiation.
Many family and friends may not know what's going on because Jenn and Vince have kept living life as normally as possible for baby Austen.
I recently spent two weeks with them and saw firsthand the near daily medical visits, tests, bloodwork, and other challenges they face. I have always admired Jenn’s ability to remain positive despite the many obstacles she has encountered in her life. Unfortunately, she needs more than positive thoughts to get through the biggest challenge she has ever faced.
It’s for this reason, I’m starting a GoFundMe account for Jenn, Vince and Austen. I'm asking for prayers and some financial support on their behalf as the Brooks’ family is facing a long battle ahead.
In less than a month since her diagnosis, Jenn and her husband lost her income while at the same time trying to cover a high insurance deductible and pay for ongoing baby expenses, including a special formula for Austen. Jenn’s fight is only beginning, as she is prepping for at least seven months of chemo and radiation.
Your prayers and thoughts are appreciated and very much needed. I’ve set up this GoFundMe in case you have a little extra cash to spare during this quarantine and want to help our Jenn.
If you can pray, give, send words of encouragement, please do. Thank you!
----------
Jenn’s Story:
Life has been a whirlwind since hearing the word, “cancer,” so many of you may not have heard the story of how Jenn’s diagnosis came about. I detail it below based upon a conversation with Jenn.
2020 began as a bright spot with the birth of their daughter, Austen Jenna, on March 20. She arrived with her sweet disposition in the middle of a global pandemic. Family celebrations, baby showers and well-wishers stopping by the house all had to be cancelled or postponed but the Brooks family was secretly thrilled to spend this quiet time bonding as a family of three.
Austen was born in March and by June, Jenn was already in the groove of being mommy and working full-time in a new role as a general manager of two restaurants. Vince and Jenn found a wonderful part-time sitter to fill in when Nana Janine wasn’t at the house cuddling and playing with baby Austen.
In early June 2020, Jenn stumbled upon a lump in her breast while getting dressed for work. It was during an everyday activity when she just happened to feel a lump despite having an annual well-woman exam just weeks earlier, where a thorough breast exam was completed.
Here's a lesson she wanted to share with other women -- see the doctor when you feel a lump! Jenn almost didn't bother calling the doctor about the lump because she had a breast biopsy done a few years ago which turned out benign fibroadenoma. What made her make the call was the fact that the lump couldn’t be felt just two weeks prior. It was a big lump that just popped up out of nowhere. It was alarming. Jenn knew the lump was different than before.
After a two-week initial “wait and see”, Jenn made an appointment to see her doctor who said at the start of the exam, "Don't tell me where the lump is.” But she immediately located it. The doctor was “great” by reassuring Jenn that given her young age of 35 yrs. and the fact Jenn had just given birth to a baby only three months earlier, the lump felt glandular. Thankfully the doctor didn’t wait and immediately sent Jenn for a mammogram that same afternoon.
After the mammogram located two masses (something she found out later), Jenn was sent for an immediate ultrasound. Alarm bells didn't go off for Jenn until the technician suddenly left the room saying she was going to show the images to the radiologist and that "he might come talk to you." The radiologist came in to see her but basically told her that he was done with his report and to go back upstairs to see her doctor who was waiting for her to discuss the findings. Even at this point, Jenn said she wasn't concerned because of her earlier experience with a breast biopsy. (Shout out to Baton Rouge Woman's Hospital for making it possible to get results so quickly!)
Her doctor, however, was more somber this time. There was no "oh it's probably nothing" this time. There was no encouragement. Jenn was informed she had two masses - one palpable (the one she found) and a smaller one hiding behind the larger lump.
Here's where the alarm bells started ringing - Jenn was set up to see a surgical breast oncologist the very next day.
Jenn said she stayed positive that night. She thought there was no way this could be happening because she was just getting back into the swing of working full time while juggling motherhood with a 3-month-old baby. Jenn refused to let her mind think the worst, that it could be cancer.
The next day she had two biopsies done in the office of her surgical oncologist. The doctor seemed very matter of fact and gave no indication of concern. Jenn said she left the office with a good feeling that things were going to be fine.
Days later, Jenn received the radiology report from her doctor in the mail. Most of the report made no sense but Jenn found a scale at the bottom of her report that rated both lumps a BI-RADS 5 Dr. Google said indicated that mammogram results are highly suspicious with a 95% chance of breast cancer.
She had a sinking feeling but she remained positive. She still couldn’t believe the results could be cancerous. In fact, she didn’t even want her husband to join her when she received the biopsy results because Jenn was so certain the results would be benign like the biopsy done years ago.
From Jenn on how she heard the “C” word on July 22, 2020:
“It felt like five hours I was waiting for her to come into her office where I was waiting. She came in carrying an binder which I could see said 'My Journey' on it. She sat on her stool and scooted up real close to me. She said she had been hoping and praying this past week for me that these results would be negative and that she wouldn’t have to tell me that I had cancer. The big lump I could feel was cancerous. She gave me a checklist of things to do next. She then promised me that I would see my baby grow up and then my grandbabies grow up. She gave me so much reassurance that she was on my team and was going to fight for me. Her sweet sincerity was so meaningful and exactly what I needed to heart. It was awkward crying with a facemask on!”
First on Jenn’s list was seeing a genetic counselor for testing to try to understand why she was diagnosed so young. Did you know the median age of a woman diagnosed with breast cancer is 61 years old (American Cancer Institute). Jenn is only 35!
The next weeks have been jam packed with MRIs, testing, ultrasounds and bloodwork. After hearing her options, Jenn opted for a double mastectomy.
If you know Jenn then you know she retained her ridiculously positive outlook going into surgery. Imaging said her lymph nodes looked healthy. The surgeon removing her lymph nodes as part of routine protocol during a double mastectomy said the 27 nodes removed looked healthy. But they weren’t. Jenn thought she was going into a 4-5 hours procedure that lasted more than 8 hours. When she woke up and heard the surgery lasted that long, Jenn knew in her gut that something was wrong. Her dear husband had to break the news that 12 of the 27 lymph nodes contained cancer.
It was official. Jenn had the big “C” - Stage 3 low estrogen-positive breast cancer.
This diagnosis shook Jenn’s world. She thought her biggest challenge in 2020 would be balancing her full-time job as a restaurant’s general manager and being the best mama possible to baby Austen.
She never ever could imagine that the fight for her life began on July 22, 2020 with her diagnosis of breast cancer.
So how does cancer impact her family? This fight means she’s no longer able to work full-time in the hospitality industry. COVID-19, long unpredictable hours, and the physical demands of the job makes working no longer possible. Working any type of job is impossible because cancer demands your time, your career and your family. Jenn’s schedule is now fully booked with near daily doctor visits and medical tests as she prepares to battle cancer with weekly chemo and daily radiation.
Her chemo will begin either September 14 or 24. Stay tuned for updates from either Jenn or Vince!
I have started this fundraiser for my cousin, Jenn Pruett Brooks and her family. Jenn, a young mother with a five-month old baby, has been diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer. She’s currently recovering from a double mastectomy surgery performed in August. In mid-September, she will begin an aggressive 7-month schedule of chemotherapy followed with radiation.
Many family and friends may not know what's going on because Jenn and Vince have kept living life as normally as possible for baby Austen.
I recently spent two weeks with them and saw firsthand the near daily medical visits, tests, bloodwork, and other challenges they face. I have always admired Jenn’s ability to remain positive despite the many obstacles she has encountered in her life. Unfortunately, she needs more than positive thoughts to get through the biggest challenge she has ever faced.
It’s for this reason, I’m starting a GoFundMe account for Jenn, Vince and Austen. I'm asking for prayers and some financial support on their behalf as the Brooks’ family is facing a long battle ahead.
In less than a month since her diagnosis, Jenn and her husband lost her income while at the same time trying to cover a high insurance deductible and pay for ongoing baby expenses, including a special formula for Austen. Jenn’s fight is only beginning, as she is prepping for at least seven months of chemo and radiation.
Your prayers and thoughts are appreciated and very much needed. I’ve set up this GoFundMe in case you have a little extra cash to spare during this quarantine and want to help our Jenn.
If you can pray, give, send words of encouragement, please do. Thank you!
----------
Jenn’s Story:
Life has been a whirlwind since hearing the word, “cancer,” so many of you may not have heard the story of how Jenn’s diagnosis came about. I detail it below based upon a conversation with Jenn.
2020 began as a bright spot with the birth of their daughter, Austen Jenna, on March 20. She arrived with her sweet disposition in the middle of a global pandemic. Family celebrations, baby showers and well-wishers stopping by the house all had to be cancelled or postponed but the Brooks family was secretly thrilled to spend this quiet time bonding as a family of three.
Austen was born in March and by June, Jenn was already in the groove of being mommy and working full-time in a new role as a general manager of two restaurants. Vince and Jenn found a wonderful part-time sitter to fill in when Nana Janine wasn’t at the house cuddling and playing with baby Austen.
In early June 2020, Jenn stumbled upon a lump in her breast while getting dressed for work. It was during an everyday activity when she just happened to feel a lump despite having an annual well-woman exam just weeks earlier, where a thorough breast exam was completed.
Here's a lesson she wanted to share with other women -- see the doctor when you feel a lump! Jenn almost didn't bother calling the doctor about the lump because she had a breast biopsy done a few years ago which turned out benign fibroadenoma. What made her make the call was the fact that the lump couldn’t be felt just two weeks prior. It was a big lump that just popped up out of nowhere. It was alarming. Jenn knew the lump was different than before.
After a two-week initial “wait and see”, Jenn made an appointment to see her doctor who said at the start of the exam, "Don't tell me where the lump is.” But she immediately located it. The doctor was “great” by reassuring Jenn that given her young age of 35 yrs. and the fact Jenn had just given birth to a baby only three months earlier, the lump felt glandular. Thankfully the doctor didn’t wait and immediately sent Jenn for a mammogram that same afternoon.
After the mammogram located two masses (something she found out later), Jenn was sent for an immediate ultrasound. Alarm bells didn't go off for Jenn until the technician suddenly left the room saying she was going to show the images to the radiologist and that "he might come talk to you." The radiologist came in to see her but basically told her that he was done with his report and to go back upstairs to see her doctor who was waiting for her to discuss the findings. Even at this point, Jenn said she wasn't concerned because of her earlier experience with a breast biopsy. (Shout out to Baton Rouge Woman's Hospital for making it possible to get results so quickly!)
Her doctor, however, was more somber this time. There was no "oh it's probably nothing" this time. There was no encouragement. Jenn was informed she had two masses - one palpable (the one she found) and a smaller one hiding behind the larger lump.
Here's where the alarm bells started ringing - Jenn was set up to see a surgical breast oncologist the very next day.
Jenn said she stayed positive that night. She thought there was no way this could be happening because she was just getting back into the swing of working full time while juggling motherhood with a 3-month-old baby. Jenn refused to let her mind think the worst, that it could be cancer.
The next day she had two biopsies done in the office of her surgical oncologist. The doctor seemed very matter of fact and gave no indication of concern. Jenn said she left the office with a good feeling that things were going to be fine.
Days later, Jenn received the radiology report from her doctor in the mail. Most of the report made no sense but Jenn found a scale at the bottom of her report that rated both lumps a BI-RADS 5 Dr. Google said indicated that mammogram results are highly suspicious with a 95% chance of breast cancer.
She had a sinking feeling but she remained positive. She still couldn’t believe the results could be cancerous. In fact, she didn’t even want her husband to join her when she received the biopsy results because Jenn was so certain the results would be benign like the biopsy done years ago.
From Jenn on how she heard the “C” word on July 22, 2020:
“It felt like five hours I was waiting for her to come into her office where I was waiting. She came in carrying an binder which I could see said 'My Journey' on it. She sat on her stool and scooted up real close to me. She said she had been hoping and praying this past week for me that these results would be negative and that she wouldn’t have to tell me that I had cancer. The big lump I could feel was cancerous. She gave me a checklist of things to do next. She then promised me that I would see my baby grow up and then my grandbabies grow up. She gave me so much reassurance that she was on my team and was going to fight for me. Her sweet sincerity was so meaningful and exactly what I needed to heart. It was awkward crying with a facemask on!”
First on Jenn’s list was seeing a genetic counselor for testing to try to understand why she was diagnosed so young. Did you know the median age of a woman diagnosed with breast cancer is 61 years old (American Cancer Institute). Jenn is only 35!
The next weeks have been jam packed with MRIs, testing, ultrasounds and bloodwork. After hearing her options, Jenn opted for a double mastectomy.
If you know Jenn then you know she retained her ridiculously positive outlook going into surgery. Imaging said her lymph nodes looked healthy. The surgeon removing her lymph nodes as part of routine protocol during a double mastectomy said the 27 nodes removed looked healthy. But they weren’t. Jenn thought she was going into a 4-5 hours procedure that lasted more than 8 hours. When she woke up and heard the surgery lasted that long, Jenn knew in her gut that something was wrong. Her dear husband had to break the news that 12 of the 27 lymph nodes contained cancer.
It was official. Jenn had the big “C” - Stage 3 low estrogen-positive breast cancer.
This diagnosis shook Jenn’s world. She thought her biggest challenge in 2020 would be balancing her full-time job as a restaurant’s general manager and being the best mama possible to baby Austen.
She never ever could imagine that the fight for her life began on July 22, 2020 with her diagnosis of breast cancer.
So how does cancer impact her family? This fight means she’s no longer able to work full-time in the hospitality industry. COVID-19, long unpredictable hours, and the physical demands of the job makes working no longer possible. Working any type of job is impossible because cancer demands your time, your career and your family. Jenn’s schedule is now fully booked with near daily doctor visits and medical tests as she prepares to battle cancer with weekly chemo and daily radiation.
Her chemo will begin either September 14 or 24. Stay tuned for updates from either Jenn or Vince!