Beating Breast Cancer at 24

Hi, my name is Rachel, and I am a current college student. Last month, a friend noticed a lump on my breast and told me I should probably get it checked out by a doctor. I’d seen this lump about a year prior but assumed it was nothing to worry about because of my age. I scheduled an appointment with my gynecologist shortly after, but he said it should be nothing since I was so young. As a precaution, he still referred me to a radiologist to get an ultrasound. The radiologist immediately had me take a mammogram and scheduled me for a biopsy. On Wednesday, August 3rd, a day after my biopsy, I was diagnosed with a rare form of breast cancer. I started crying in the middle of a nail salon, tears everywhere BUT nails on point. The doctor automatically scheduled me to see an oncologist surgeon. Dr. Brooke’s, one of the best oncologist surgeons in California, looked at me and said, “you are so young.” But this time, my age was not the one thing preventing me from getting the cancer diagnosis. We both realized that my age was now a blessing and a curse. Unfortunately, I was just told a couple of days ago that I have stage 3 breast cancer. I guess you could say things are moving pretty fast in my new relationship with cancer.. With all this being said, I will need all the help I can get! I am still pursuing my education amidst my diagnosis, but it will look slightly different for me now. I hope to fundraise my goal of $50,000 to cover my travel, living, and medical expenses throughout all of this! In the wise words of Indy Blue, “I LOVE YOU, say it back ”