I am blessed to be part of an amazing family. From the beginning, we had our scrapes and ordinary wrangling, but we were raised to be hard-working, resourceful, loyal, and resilient…and we are. We have been through a lot. We’ve had our share of disappointments and plenty of reasons to cheer each other on. So, Sister Sojourn seems fitting to capture our adventures of doing life together…even across many miles.
Today, I’m making soup. Soup is supposed to make you feel better. Right? But I’m not feeling better. There isn’t a cure for bad news.
Over the years, there was plenty of bad news. My brother passed away. My mother was diagnosed with cancer. Then, in succession, three of my sisters faced breast cancer. It was too much to be coincidental. Way too much.
My sister, Amy, talked about genetic testing. I didn’t have a clue about what that meant. I followed up with a genetic counselor at St. Luke’s Hospital in Bethlehem, PA, had the test to identify genetic mutations, and fully expected a good report. Unfortunately, that was not the case. I tested positive for the most common cause of hereditary breast cancer, an inherited BRCA1 gene mutation (see video here or below). The combined risk factors set my chances of breast cancer at 87-89% and the risk of ovarian cancer at nearly 50%.
Prior to the test results, I asked Amy what she would do if she tested positive. Without hesitation, she said she would opt for a prophylactic mastectomy—surgery to remove one or both breasts to reduce the risk of developing breast cancer. At the time, I thought it was extreme, but then it became a reality. After weighing the risks and options, I chose to have a prophylactic double mastectomy and oophorectomy. The surgeries took place in 2011 and 2012 (before Angelina Jolie made the same decision in 2013).
Since then, my sisters have experienced recurrences of breast cancer; we were always survivors. I always expected that we would be survivors. After all, we’re hard-working, resourceful, loyal, and resilient.
Now, back to my soup. It’s not helping me feel better.
Brandi told us that she again has been diagnosed with cancer. This time, she said it was stage 4 —metastatic breast cancer (MBC) ). I didn’t realize the magnitude of the diagnosis. And now, I do. MBC has no cure. My head can’t process her life on a timeline. My heart won’t accept the fact that MBC has no survivors. However, I am determined to fight for the future of the next generations by raising money for MBC research while doing things we love with my sister.
Of course, it’s always an adventure, and there may be good news along the way. We learn to appreciate each day. We learn to be more kind, more compassionate, and more present. But more than anything, we connect with people in a powerful and meaningful way. And we’ll do it because we’re hard-working, resourceful, loyal, resilient, and family.