Becca's Journey

Becca was diagnosed with both Stage 0 DCIS and Stage 1 invasive breast cancer on December 22, 2022. Both cancers were identified as HR+ and HER2+. Genetic testing showed it was not hereditary. This page documents her journey from start to finish. She successfully finished treatment on February 20, 2024 and was declared cancer-free.

Many people have asked how she discovered the cancer at 29 years old, and it began in September 2022. She felt a lump in her right breast and decided to mention it to her gynecologist during her November 17th appointment, who sent her for scanning. Because she was not a priority case, the breast center could not get her scheduled until December 20th. After an ultrasound and a mammogram, the doctor did a biopsy that same day and results were returned two days later over a phone call while Becca was in Pennsylvania for the holidays. A slew of testing, mammograms, MRIs and more biopsies occurred from the end of December through mid-January, when she was then assigned a team of oncologists...

February 20th - SHE IS DONE. The final round of Herceptin was infused today, and with excellent blood work, her oncologist has deemed her healthy with no more treatment scheduled! She is officially cancer-free! 18 total rounds of anti-cancer drug infusions have been completed. Becca will follow up for the first time in 4 months, but her oncologist is of the belief that Becca's breast cancer has been cured. It has been a long journey, but she is thankful for her life, health, and is ready to move forward and live life to the fullest! Becca wants to thank everyone who supported her throughout this journey, as she appreciated everyone's help, kind words, and support!

November 7th - Becca's lab results from her CBC and CMP panels came back normal for the first time since the beginning of this journey. She received her 7th of 12 Herceptin infusions today, which went well. The side effects from Herceptin are relatively minimal besides exhaustion and a massive headache the day of infusion. Today, Becca's doctors started her on Tamoxifen. This is a drug that supresses the estrogen in her body, since her cancer was estrogen positive (the HR+ part of her diagnosis). She will remain on this medication for 5-10 years. The side effects of this medication include menopause and menopause-like symptoms such as hot flashes and irritability (although she's always irritable, let's be honest). Once her body gets used to Tamoxifen, most of those side effects should even out, which will take up to six months. Becca has also finished her cycle of Eliquis, and does not have to take the blood thinner anymore.

September 6th - We are through the hardest part of this journey, as Becca is healed from surgery! Since then, she has seen her Plastic Surgeon multiple  times for check-ups and everything is healing well. There was a small hiccup after surgery, where one of the lymph nodes in her armpit (above the one that was removed) got infected, which spread pretty quickly to her breast incision and one of her fingers. She was put on some heavy antibiotics, which took care of the infection, but she lost that fingernail in the process (it's already growing back, don't worry). The effects of chemotherapy are beginning to ease, though they are still ever-present. Her fingernails have all lifted/torn off the bed and turned an ugly brown/green color (thank you Taxotere), her hair on her head has thinned significantly (but it's not truly noticeable!), and the hot flashes still occur 10-15 times a day. July 26th was her second of 12 rounds of Herceptin-only, and it was immediately noticeable that these 12 final infusions would not be enjoyable without a chemo port (and she is still on Eliquis, fighting the blood clot). Because of the lymph node removal in her right armpit, she can never have needle sticks or blood pressure taken from that arm to prevent the possibility of lymphedema. Without a chemo port, she will have to receive infusion and have labs drawn from the left arm, with separate needle sticks - which has proven to be...fun. Her last scheduled infusion will be in February 2024, and fortunately she does not need radiation. So far, we have gotten through 4 of these 12 rounds (today being her 4th), and Herceptin alone has treated her way nicer than Taxotere and Carboplatin. Other than heavy exhaustion and possibility of weakening the heart muscle, Herceptin does not cause any other visible side effects. So far, her echocardiograms have shown her heart to remain strong - and she continues to play soccer and exercise regularly (yes, her surgeon has given her permission to do so post-surgery). Becca also had a belated 30th birthday/beat cancer party in August, went to an Austin FC game, and visited her family in PA in the past few weeks. Things are looking up!

July 13th - Surgery was successful! Becca went into the hospital early in the morning and was in recovery before noon. The plastic surgeon was able to go straight to implants, instead of using expanders, after the double mastectomy. She has two JP drains that will remain in place for about a week. Each of these drains has to be emptied a few times a day and the amount of liquid kept track of until they come out. Recovery should last about 2 weeks, and then Becca can get back to doing normal activities such as driving, working, or lightly exercising. The surgeon also removed her chemo port, to hopefully alleviate the blood clot it was causing in her right shoulder. The only thing left is to get through 11 more rounds of Herceptin starting July 26th (once every 3 weeks), and since her port was removed, these will go through an iv in her arm or hand.

June 26th - The results came back from the MRI and Becca no longer has invasive breast cancer! The chemo seems to have done its job and there are no signs of invasive disease anymore. The DCIS is still present, as expected, though the chemo did help shrink those areas. Becca will meet with her plastic surgeon one last time, and surgery is still on schedule for Thursday July 13th! Woo!

June 20th - After the final round of chemo, and over the course of the last few weeks, Becca experienced some pretty harsh side effects. First, it was a UTI that took 2 different antibiotics, an urgent care and ER visit, and a catheter to finally get rid of. Then Becca found out she has a blood clot in her shoulder that is being caused by her port. According to her Oncologist, Becca's veins are fairly small, and with the positioning of the port inside the vein, combined with the effects chemotherapy drugs have on the blood, clots are fairly common. She is now on Eliquis (blood thinner) and will probably have to remain on it until the port comes out next spring. The first Herceptin-only infusion was a success, and Becca has had no noticeable side effects from it. The Oncologist informed her that she should begin to feel better overall, with the major chemo side effects beginning to diminish over the next several weeks (such as muscle pain, extreme fatigue, hot flashes, and hair loss), and she is still fairly anemic. Her surgery date is scheduled for July 13th, and Becca is doing a double mastectomy with reconstruction at the same time.  Since the last round of chemo, Becca also did a MUGA scan on her heart to ensure its strength, as Herceptin's main side effect is cardiotoxicity (spolier alert: her heart is doing fine). The next Herceptin infusion has been pushed back to July 26th in order to let her body recover for surgery. Up next is an MRI on June 26th; this will tell us if the chemo did its job and whether or not any of the invasive cancer still remains (fingers crossed)!

May 31st - Well the final round of chemo is in the books! After being delayed from Tuesday May 30th to Wednesday May 31st (due to scheduling issues), Becca is done! She has finished with the cold capping and will await to hear the scheduled date of surgery next week. Becca will continue with the Herceptin-only infusions, beginning on June 20th, for 12 more rounds. The good news is that Herceptin does not cause hair loss or any major side effects. The only thing that will be monitored is her heart, as Herceptin can cause heart issues. In her last echocardiogram, Becca's heart function has decreased, so she will go in for a Nuclear Medicine Myocardial on June 7th. The doctors are not overly concerned about it, so the test is mostly out of precaution. Becca will also have an MRI on June 7th as well. The picture below is Becca ringing the chemo bell after she finished her last infusion:

May 9th - The effects of the chemotherapy were very relevant this round. Becca was almost immediately ill once the infusion began. The cold caps are still working, as she has not lost any hair on her head - only her eyebrows and eyelashes. We are through round 5, with only one more to go. Becca will then continue with Herceptin infusions, every 3 weeks for 12 more rounds (basically until February 2024). 

April 18th - This was the most difficult round so far. With the Infusion Room completely full of patients, there was a delay in getting things going in the morning. Nausea and extreme fatigue kicked in almost immediately after the drugs began to flow (hello worsening symptoms), so Becca ended up sleeping through most of the infusion (in-between cold cap changes). Of course Cooper stopped by and said hello, but it was mid-afternoon before Becca and Brenda were able to leave the Cancer Intitute and head home. Four rounds down, two to go!

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March 28th - We are halfway there, as round 3 of 6 is complete! Knock on wood, Becca still has minimal hair loss on her head, which means the cold capping seems to be working! The exhaustion hit hard during this round, starting during the infusion itself, rather than towards the end of the day. Prior to the infusion, Becca met with her Oncologist, and mentioned that she could not feel the lump in her breast anymore. Her Oncologist confirmed that there was now a divet where the cluster of cancer cells used to exist, but are no longer there (meaning the chemo is working)! Some of the best news Becca could have recieved only 3 rounds into chemotherapy! Fingers crossed, good news will continue to roll in over the coming months!

March 7th - Round 2 of 6 is done! This round of chemo went well, and ended up taking 1 hour less than the first round, as Herceptin was only give for 30 minutes, instead of 1 hour and 30 minutes. The higher dose is only given during the first round. The cold capping is continuing to go well, and so far Becca has had minimal hair loss on her head. By the end of the 5 hours of cold capping post-infusion, Becca is ready to get it off her head, as it weighs 4-5lbs and the temperature is -37C (-34.6F). The day after chemo, Becca goes back to the cancer institute to receive a shot, Ziextenzo, that will boost her immunity and white cell production to prevent total immune system depletion. This shot will cause deep bone marrow pain for a few days, as her white cell production goes into overdrive. The Medical Oncologist informed Becca this is all normal. The rest of her side effects begin to occur after the pre-meds, given to Becca through her port before the chemo drugs, wear off approximately 72 hours post-infusion, around Friday. She will experience side effects for up to a week or longer post-infusion day, and remains severely immunocompromised for the first 7-10 days.

February 14th - First day of chemo is in the books! Becca spent the day at the Cancer Institute and is resting at home. Only 5 more cycles to go! The funny hat on her head is called a cold cap, and it will help Becca retain her hair. You can learn more about it here. The four-legged cutie in the photo is one of the Institute's therapy dogs, Cooper!

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February 8th - Becca has finally gotten both chest tubes removed and was released to go home today. The originally scheduled chemo for tomorrow, February 9th,  has been postponed to next week on Tuesday February 14th. Becca appreciates all the well wishes she has received from everyone while in the hospital over the past week!

February 6th - Surgery for the port placement on February 2nd did not go as planned. The port was originally to be placed on the left side of her chest, but there were difficulties getting the vein to cooperate, so the port was moved to the right side. During this process, both lungs were punctured and collapsed. Chest tubes were placed to help inflate the lungs again, but as of today Becca remains in the hospital. She is hopeful of getting the tubes removed and going home tomorrow.  This will delay the start of her chemo. 

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January 25th - Outpatient surgery for placement of the vascular access port has now been scheduled for Thursday February 2nd. Becca will have an echocardiogram prior to her first scheduled chemotherapy infusion in order to ensure her heart muscle strength.  Her first round of chemotherapy will be Thursday February 9th and will continue every 3rd Thursday through the end of May.

January 19th - Becca met with her Medical Oncologist, and it was determined that chemotherapy will be the first step in her treatment. She will undergo an outpatient surgery to insert a vascular access port in her chest, so that the medication can be given in 6 cycles; every 3 weeks, for 18 weeks. Carboplatin and Taxotere are the two anti-cancer medications she will be given. A HER2-targeted drug called Herceptin will also be given during this time. These infusions will take approximately 3-4 hours each visit. She will be immunocompromised throughout the duration of her chemotherapy treatment. Once all 6 cycles are complete, she will undergo a double mastectomy surgery with her Surgical Oncologist.