When Breast Cancer Hits Home

Hi I'm Carrie Davis the medical reporter here at News Channel 7. Today, we are starting a blog where you will be able to find information about stuff going on in the medical community in our area. I will have everything for you from the clinical trials going on in our area to where to find low cost insurance or medical care. I will also include some stories about the special people I cover on a daily basis.
That brings me to my first blog, which will be a personal one. Today I covered a story that hits very close to home. I went to the Brides Against Breast Cancer event in Spartanburg. They sell designer gowns at a fraction of the cost and the proceeds go toward making memories for women who have breast cancer and are in the last stages of life. Not only am I a bride, but I just lost a very dear aunt to breast cancer. My aunt Rita was 62 years old and one of the most amazing people I have ever known. She had an undying energy and vivaciousness that infected us all. She was the family glue. We were shocked when two years ago she was diagnosed with stage four breast cancer. She seemed to be the most healthy of my mother's sisters. She always ate well, exercised and had a healthy spiritual life. She also had just welcomed her first grandchild into the world and over the next two years two more would follow. She had everything to live for.
But as we all know, there are just some things we can't control and Rita's cancer was one of them. As hard as she tried, her body just couldn't fight it off. She had a particularly aggressive type of breast cancer called Triple Negative Breast Cancer.
Here's the definition according to the Triple Negative Breast Cancer Foundation:
"Subtypes of breast cancer are generally diagnosed based upon the presence, or lack of, three "receptors" known to fuel most breast cancers: estrogen receptors, progesterone receptors and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2). The most successful treatments for breast cancer target these receptors. Unfortunately, none of these receptors are found in women with triple negative breast cancer. In other words, a triple negative breast cancer diagnosis means that the offending tumor is estrogen receptor-negative, progesterone receptor-negative and HER2-negative, thus giving rise to the name "triple negative breast cancer."
This type of cancer causes tumors and is more likely than other breast cancers to reoccur. In some cases it responds well to chemotherapy, unfortunately for my aunt that wasn't the case.
To say my family is devastated is an understatement. As I thought about my wedding today, I was saddened by the thought that Rita won't be there. However, her children and grandchildren will be there and I know she would be happy we are all together. I have to believe she'll be shining down on me that day.
Rita worked in education all her life and had a zest for learning and I think she would be happy I am sharing her story. Hopefully, through reading the story it will make at least one or more women think twice and get get their check up before it is too late. If caught early enough, we can survive breast cancer. We want to help you and would be happy to send you an email reminding you to do a self check up. Just click on this link and enter your information. We'll send you an alert each month.

If you have any comments or topics you would like to learn more about send me an email. I would love to hear from you and look into the medical issues that matter to you most. cdavis@wspa.com
Thank you.
Carrie