BOSTON – Without any family history of cancer, Siobhan Donovan couldn’t have been more stunned by the blow of being diagnosed with breast cancer in her third trimester of pregnancy.
“That really turned our world upside down. What do you mean it can’t be cured? What does this mean for the rest of my life? I was 33. I had a two-week-old, a three-year-old, a child aged two. -old That’s how I ended up with my stage 4 diagnosis,” the Worcester woman recalled.
More young women are diagnosed every year
New research published this week by the American Cancer Society shows a continued decline in breast cancer deaths in the US. But more young women are diagnosed every year.
“This is a disease we are really concerned about because younger patients are more likely to develop more aggressive breast cancer that warrants more aggressive therapies,” explained Dr. Ann Partridge out. She is interim chief of medical oncology for Dana-Farber and founder and director of the Young and Strong program for young adults with breast cancer.
Survivor Kelly Cassier is meeting more and more young patients along the South Shore. She was 42 when she was diagnosed and answered the devastating phone call during a family trip to Disney.
“When they had to have the double mastectomy, they were wrong. There was more cancer than they expected. I ended up in stage 3, grade 3,” she said. Cassier encouraged other cancer patients to seek support in their communities through local organizations such as Marisa’s Mission.
Assess your risk
Dana-Farber offers a free AssessYourRisk tool online. Doctors urge patients to know family history, starting screening around age 40 and paying attention to breast health. Still, Siobhan did not pose a high risk. And noticed her own symptom seven years before she would have had a mammogram.
“It’s very hard. There are a lot of hidden fights and hidden struggles. But at the end of the day, I have three perfect reasons to get up and do this every day. What more can I ask for? We put one foot in front of the other, one day for the next, and we just keep going,” Donovan said.
