Latest / Cristy M. Diaz Podcast Conversations from the Heart / Laura Smith: Breast Cancer. 5 Surgeries. 1 Woman’s Story.

Transcript

Laura Smith: Breast Cancer. 5 Surgeries. 1 Woman’s Story. · Cristy M. Diaz Podcast Conversations from the Heart

0:00
I'm Christy M. Diaz and I'm having
0:02
conversations from the heart. Real
0:04
people, real stories, and conversations
0:07
that matter. Let's get into it. Today, I
0:10
am sitting down with Laura Smith, a mom
0:12
of three whose routine mammogram at 46
0:14
led to a diagnosis she never expected,
0:17
DCIS.
0:19
What followed was a lumpctomy, a
0:21
bilateral masectomy, an infection, and
0:24
five surgeries in total. But this
0:26
conversation goes beyond the procedures.
0:29
It's about finding your way through
0:30
recovery, deciding how to tell your
0:32
children, and learning to let them see
0:34
you be human. As we continue our
0:36
conversations during breast cancer
0:38
awareness month, hers is a reminder of
0:40
why screening matters and why every
0:42
woman's experience deserves to be heard.
0:46
Hi everybody and welcome to another
0:48
conversation. I am here with my friend
0:50
Laura Smith. Hi Laura. Hi first. Thank
0:52
you for having Molly. Thank you for
0:54
being here and sharing in us as we
0:56
celebrate breast cancer awareness month.
0:58
And we want to thank you so much for
1:01
your heroism of coming forth and sharing
1:03
your story with us. I know that you're a
1:05
very private person when it comes to
1:07
this, but the fact that you're willing
1:09
to sit down and share your story, I know
1:11
it's because you want to touch so many
1:13
lives and spread the awareness of
1:16
detection.
1:16
>> For sure. Absolutely.
1:18
>> Please start by introducing yourself.
1:20
>> Okay. Yeah. As you said, my name's Laura
1:22
Smith. I've lived here in Coronables for
1:25
about five years. We moved after the
1:27
pandemic from the Bay Area in
1:29
California. I have husband, three
1:32
daughters. Two are in high school and
1:33
one in middle school and I have two
1:36
noodles as well. I get popcorn always
1:39
here. I think she's so happy we're at a
1:41
new studio where she's loud. I love it.
1:43
She's a good therapy dog.
1:44
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2:15
Didn't think a thing of it because I'd
2:17
never really had anything and didn't
2:18
have family history. So, I remember that
2:21
day being at the the imaging center for
2:23
Baptist in Coral Gables and getting
2:26
ready to order lunch and I had my phone
2:28
up and then I noticed I was the last one
2:30
in the rating room and actually a lady
2:32
came by and kind of tapped me and said
2:34
good luck and that's when my blood
2:36
pressure just dropped and I was like I
2:38
am the last one in here. What's going
2:40
on? And so they came out and they said
2:42
you would come back and the radiologist
2:44
right there on the spot said here I want
2:46
you to come take a look. this is your
2:48
image from last year. This is this here.
2:50
See this little area right here. It
2:52
wasn't here last year and these are the
2:54
things that we looked for. And I was
2:56
like, "Oh, okay. What is that?" And he's
2:58
not going to say that it's cancer. And
3:00
again, the hair stands up on the back of
3:02
my neckard. And I was like, "Okay." And
3:04
he's like, "But I want you to go get
3:05
that biopsy." And I was like, "Of
3:07
course. Let's get that set up." So
3:09
within that appointment, I'd had an
3:12
appointment at the Miami Cancer
3:13
Institute set up for a biopsy. So I went
3:17
within a matter of days and had the
3:19
biopsy and the result came back and yeah
3:24
I remember where I was exactly. I just
3:27
had lunch with some of my friends in the
3:28
grove and I came out and I remember
3:31
specifically my doctor saying no news is
3:33
good news and then the phone ranging
3:35
with her. I was in lodge so I went to
3:37
voicemail and she was like your results
3:40
are back give me a call and that's when
3:42
I was like this is not great. So I
3:44
called her back immediately and she
3:47
said, "Yeah, it looks like you're
3:49
positive for DCIS duck bill carcinoma
3:52
invite you. If you're going to have it,
3:54
this is the best because it's known as
3:56
state zero." But she's like, "I'm not
3:59
the specialist. We're going to get you
4:00
set up with a surgical oncologist and
4:03
see what the options are." So DCIS and
4:07
stage zero breast cancer are two words
4:09
or three words I had never heard of. And
4:13
coincidentally enough, we just had
4:15
Lordis Millie on here. She had the same
4:17
diagnosis. So I learned to her what this
4:20
was. And when you called and told me you
4:22
were finally ready to share your story
4:24
and you told me you also got the DCIS
4:28
diagnosis, I was shocked. Yeah. With you
4:30
are willing to share your story. Ed DCIS
4:33
stage zero. But I think it's just so
4:35
perfect that we're talking about that
4:37
one because people don't know about it.
4:40
People don't know stage zero is actually
4:42
a cancer diagnosis and does need to be
4:45
looked after, but it's also, thank
4:47
goodness, something that you guys were
4:49
able to find through early detection.
4:51
>> Exactly. Yeah. This is not the type of
4:54
breast cancer that you feel. It's
4:56
detectable only through a mamog. And
4:58
that's why it's so important to get
5:00
those annual screens and why we get
5:02
those screens early where you can
5:05
compare them year over year and set them
5:06
side by side because things like this
5:09
show up especially for women that have
5:11
dense breast tissue which I did and they
5:14
said okay this is great because now it's
5:16
showing and yeah it's nice because if it
5:19
is strictly DCIS it usually mean that it
5:22
hasn't become invasive. If it has become
5:25
invasive, that kicks it into a different
5:26
category. But that's how you do
5:28
different pathology and you figure that
5:29
out. But once I did the first biopsy and
5:32
I got the results back, the radiologist
5:35
actually called me that following day
5:38
and said, "You know what? There was a
5:39
second area that we were going to
5:41
monitor, but now since this one was
5:43
positive, I want you to come back for a
5:45
second biopsy and let's test this other
5:47
area." So again, of course, in we go.
5:50
That second area was also positive. And
5:52
that's when I kind of lost it cuz I was
5:55
like, "Wait, there's two. That means
5:57
there's more. And what does this all
5:59
mean? Is it even scarier than I
6:00
thought?" And again, they blame a lot of
6:02
it on dense breast tissue that they
6:04
can't really see. And the mamograms are
6:06
great, but they're not perfect. So then
6:09
I went in for a breast MRI and that
6:13
didn't find anything. So that was good.
6:15
Just the two areas that we already knew
6:16
about. And so at that point we scheduled
6:19
a lumpctomy hoping that we could get
6:22
that area even though it was two
6:25
separate spots. We were hopeful that we
6:28
can try to do that and went in and it
6:30
was after that surgery they came back to
6:32
me and said they sent it off for
6:34
pathology and the margin weren't clear
6:37
which I was like I've heard that term
6:40
but it's all such a learning process so
6:42
much research looking into what all
6:44
these different things mean cuz I hadn't
6:46
had a lot of exposure to cancer. So for
6:49
me I was like okay let me learn again
6:51
what that word margins mean. And
6:53
basically what that my doctor said is
6:55
that they'd spread it out over seven
6:57
slides. And they wanted clear the the
7:00
cancer cells to not continue on all four
7:02
sides. So I was clear on the left of
7:05
this slide, clear on the tops, clear on
7:07
the bottom, but it ran off on the end on
7:09
gray. So they were like, "We just didn't
7:11
get it all and we don't know how much
7:13
more." So she's like, "If you were 66
7:16
and didn't have estrogen, so let me back
7:19
up. These were also found to be estrogen
7:22
receptor positive, okay, and
7:24
progesterone receptor positive, which
7:26
are female hormones as we know. And why
7:29
when you're postmenopausal, some of
7:31
these things are a little less intense
7:34
because you don't have those sure as
7:36
many of those hormones anymore. Since I
7:38
was premenopausal, that's when she was
7:40
like, "Okay, we don't really need to
7:41
mess around with this anymore because
7:43
you have a fuel source for these
7:45
tumors." That's when we went in and did
7:47
the the bilateral mastctomy to just make
7:50
sure that we had everything clear.
7:53
I want to take this back, Laura, because
7:55
I want to know at what point you told
7:57
your daughters and how much you told
7:59
them and I want to go through the
8:00
process with you. So, you start with a
8:02
lumpctomy.
8:04
At that point, did you sit your
8:07
daughters down and tell them? though
8:09
once we got the lumpctomy scheduled it
8:12
was an odd time for our family because
8:14
my oldest daughter was currently in
8:16
Australia as a foreign exchange student.
8:18
So for me it was really important to
8:20
have all of them together. So luckily
8:23
with the biopsies and with it being so
8:26
early biopsy takes a little bit of
8:28
themselves with it when they do the
8:30
access. So my doctor I told her the
8:32
story. I said we're going to go pick up
8:34
my daughter in Australia. Can I push
8:36
this off until I come back? which would
8:38
have been like 3 weeks and she was like
8:40
okay I'll let you go but we're doing it
8:43
as soon as you get back and I said
8:45
it's a deal that pinky promise on that
8:48
we'll do it so we that day we went to
8:50
Australia and I was so anxious to tell
8:54
them I'm very close with my daughters
8:56
and I feel like I want them to be able
8:59
to come to me and largely take in a
9:02
relationship so once I got to Australia
9:05
I was so excited to tell I wanted to
9:07
tell them the first moment I saw
9:09
everyone together and my husband was
9:11
like let's wait until we had a moment to
9:14
just be able to sit and really die and
9:16
was like so before that I had even made
9:19
some powerpoints slides I'm a a former
9:22
consultant so to me I like to see things
9:25
visually I like to see how it's broken
9:26
out explained to me and that that's what
9:29
I'd like myself is I was alerting them
9:31
about what DCIS meant the treatment
9:33
options and where we were going to go
9:35
further and how serious this was or not
9:38
serious. So, I made some slides for them
9:40
so they could see and I could explain it
9:42
to them. So, we had an opportunity. It
9:44
was a quiet afternoon. I got everyone
9:47
together, but my little one was off
9:48
doing something. And I couldn't get her
9:50
to come to us. And so, I was like,
9:52
"Guys, I just I can't wait any longer.
9:54
I'm going to go ahead and tell you." And
9:55
I got up my slides and showed them, but
9:57
my older two,
9:59
they shared this nurse picking up your
10:02
daughter from her foreign exchange
10:03
student process in Australia. in
10:05
Australia. So, it was nice and quiet and
10:07
I think at that point we were outside me
10:10
and I sat all of them down and I said,
10:12
"Here's what we're going to do. This is
10:14
the diagnosis. This is what it means.
10:16
I'm going to have this surgery and I'm
10:18
going to be fine as long as they don't
10:19
find anything worse. There will be no
10:21
chemo and I will be able to like you
10:24
very matter of fact." as very matter of
10:26
fact because to me that was important
10:27
that I came to them with facts and gave
10:31
at least the impression that I was
10:34
confident and it's going to be okay that
10:37
I didn't want to scare them but there's
10:40
no two rape about it anytime you say
10:42
that c word it's scary so the oldest was
10:44
said something great plan the middle
10:48
burst into tears and was hugging me just
10:51
took it as this there's a lot of what
10:53
else here and I need to make sure that
10:55
all is going to be okay. And then they
10:57
said, "In furthermore, wait to tell the
10:59
little one until she's back from summer
11:00
camp." They're like, "She'll never leave
11:02
to go to summer camp." And I said,
11:03
"Thank you guys for your input on that
11:05
because to me, I was so nervous and
11:08
wanted to make sure everyone felt like
11:10
they were in the know." And I said, "I
11:12
have to remember that she's only 10."
11:14
And yes, we need to make sure that
11:15
everything is fine before we talk to
11:16
her. though. We came back home, got her
11:19
off to summer camp, had the lumpctomy,
11:22
went to pick her up. Her summer camp was
11:24
still very sore. So, she comes to run
11:27
and jump when I go to pick her up. And I
11:29
was like putting my hands out the level.
11:31
I tried to hug her and my husband tried
11:33
to kind of sweep her into a big hug so
11:35
that she wouldn't big hug me. And I
11:38
think pretty soon after that point, we
11:40
knew that I was going to have to have a
11:42
subsequent surgery. So let's talk about
11:44
that because
11:46
they recommended a bilateral vasectomy
11:49
based on your lumpctomy results.
11:51
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12:08
back to our conversation.
12:10
you has to have them replaced every 10
12:12
to 15 years. The technology keeps
12:14
getting a little bit better. They can
12:16
prolong it, but it is I'm looking at
12:18
more procedures down the road. So, it
12:20
was a decision that we had to really
12:22
talk through and think about. And yes,
12:25
ultimately I came to the conclusion
12:27
myself because it is your own body part.
12:30
And I just thought, hey, again, when it
12:32
comes to my family, my kids, this is the
12:34
best long-term decision so that we don't
12:37
have to keep worrying every 6 months,
12:40
anytime there's anything that shows up
12:42
on any kind of mamogram or MRI mamog
12:46
memorized every 6 months. I just
12:47
thought, okay, let's just do this.
12:50
>> Your story is just making me realize
12:52
that you're a prime example that no
12:54
matter what's happening, you're still in
12:56
love.
12:56
>> Yeah. and you still have to re in the
13:00
kids and be the captain of that ship.
13:02
So, you know, you get this result that
13:05
you need to have a lid back to me, but
13:06
you need to go pick up your daughter at
13:08
school.
13:09
>> So, you tell them in one country,
13:11
>> then they tell you not to tell the baby
13:13
because she's going to summer camp and
13:15
you find out going to pick them up at
13:17
summer camp that you need the double
13:19
masectomy. How do you have those
13:22
thoughts going through your mind while
13:23
you were leathery knowing that you've
13:26
got these massive surgeries ahead of
13:29
you?
13:29
>> Yeah, I think I was saying for me it was
13:31
important to understand it so that I
13:34
could break it down to them. So, I made
13:36
sure that I did lots of research and
13:38
made my PowerPoints line so that I can
13:40
speak to it and let them know there was
13:42
science behind it that we had a great
13:44
team that knew what they were doing and
13:47
we're trying to give the best amount of
13:49
care that we could so that we had the
13:51
best prognosis long term. And it's funny
13:53
how each daughter, same parent, same
13:56
household had such different reactions.
14:00
And the little one I've said, you know,
14:02
we have time. We're on a plane coming
14:04
back to summer camp. I'll be all of your
14:06
questions and she would ask a question
14:07
and then she would sit on it and then
14:09
she would come back and ask another
14:11
question. And that's how it went with
14:12
her is that she would be fine and then
14:14
she would think of something and then
14:16
she would ask me and I wanted to keep
14:18
that dialogue open so that she felt like
14:20
she was at the no and it did it made her
14:22
I think it empowered her to have that
14:24
information and it helped her to be
14:26
stronger to get through it even though
14:28
considering she was only in starting
14:30
fifth grade by the time they went to
14:32
school. boy was started fifth grade and
14:35
luckily the her fifth grade teacher and
14:37
talk about stars aligning her fifth
14:39
grade teacher had breast cancer a couple
14:41
of years prior. Wow. And when I walked
14:43
in that day I said that is that sweet
14:46
little teacher that had the scarf 2
14:48
years ago. And so I went home and I
14:50
wrote an email to her and told her my
14:52
story and she said, "I'm here. I'm here
14:55
for her. I'm here for you. Whatever you
14:57
need." So, it was just a blessing in
15:00
disguise to have her as our homework
15:02
that year and I'm still really good
15:03
friends with her. Those are moments that
15:05
I like to call on the podcast godidence
15:07
>> totally
15:08
>> because those are Yeah, that's not a
15:10
mistake and that's not a happy accident.
15:13
That's a god sentence. That was meant to
15:15
happen.
15:16
>> Yeah. I hadn't told school. I hadn't
15:18
told anyone. So, it wasn't like they
15:20
placed me with her on purpose. Just it's
15:22
a very good.
15:24
>> Yeah. So you go in for your bilateral
15:27
was done to be
15:28
>> I stayed overnight and then left in the
15:31
afternoon on the second day. So I was
15:33
able to rest and kind of get through the
15:35
anesthesia start to feel better before I
15:38
went home that evening.
15:40
>> And from what I learned from Lordis'
15:42
conversation and she had the opportunity
15:44
if her stars aligned in surgery to have
15:47
her reconstruction done in the process.
15:49
>> Yes. Was that an offering for you? They
15:52
didn't specifically offer that because
15:55
in the surgery they were going to be
15:57
doing a lonal
15:59
lymph node biopsy. Okay. Yes. And if the
16:03
results went one way or another, it
16:05
would mean that it had spine or not. So
16:07
they took two lymph nodes and both of
16:09
them were clear. But still, it was just
16:11
always part of our surgical plan to do
16:14
the tissue expanders before they did the
16:17
full implants. So that's what we did
16:20
through the surgery and that's how it
16:21
ended up. So I woke up having the result
16:24
that I thought I was going to I had the
16:26
bracers at the time that I woke up. And
16:29
so you wake up very uncomfortable. When
16:32
did they come and tell you the results
16:33
of it? You know that's a good question.
16:36
Was it the next day possibly or was it
16:39
once I got home? It took a little bit of
16:42
time I think. I don't think I was still
16:44
in the hospital. What were the results?
16:47
The results were good because it was
16:50
exactly what they thought it was which
16:52
was descitis. The lens nodes were clear
16:55
and it hadn't brimmed any other part. So
16:57
that's where they were like we're good
16:59
with what we have found and since we did
17:01
the bilateral mastctomy you're good to
17:03
go with no radiation. So no radiation
17:06
and no chemotherapy. What a blessing.
17:08
What a blessing. So you're coasting at
17:11
this point. You think you're in the
17:13
clear. You've got this wonderful news
17:16
from the doctor, but you develop an
17:18
infection.
17:18
>> Yes. That was odd because I went home
17:22
and within a couple of days, I was just
17:25
very obsinant about I'm going to get
17:27
back to it as quickly as I can. So, as
17:29
soon as I felt better, I was up and you
17:32
get four surgical drains with a
17:34
bilateral mastctomy. So, you I had a
17:37
little belt where I could put the drain.
17:39
Then, I was up walking around doing
17:40
things. And then it was like one
17:43
afternoon it just hit where I all of a
17:45
sudden had a lot of swelling and a lot
17:46
of pain and then I blamed myself as we
17:49
do. Oh, I did too much. I've done
17:52
something wrong. But in the instructions
17:54
it said if anything like this happens
17:56
you call immediately. So I did and they
17:59
said okay you're going to come in
18:01
tomorrow anyway to remove a drain. We'll
18:02
take a look at everything at that time.
18:05
And so they did and they were like,
18:06
"Yeah, it looks like maybe we had a
18:08
little blockage from one of the drains,
18:10
but we're going to go ahead and give you
18:11
this antibiotic." So I took the
18:14
antibiotic and it didn't improve
18:16
anything at all. So it just
18:19
progressively got worse to where I
18:22
finally got to a point I was keeping the
18:24
doctors updated with pictures and
18:26
description and how I felt. And this my
18:29
reconstructive plastic surgeon called me
18:31
one morning at 7:00 a.m. And just as a
18:34
side note, my husband had left the night
18:36
before to go on a trip, a business trip
18:39
to China, which he hardly ever does.
18:42
>> Oh, wow.
18:42
>> So, of course, again, like things were
18:44
not as they should, and they said,
18:46
"Don't eat anything." And I've said,
18:48
"Okay, why? You're coming in for surgery
18:51
today. The infection getting worse." And
18:53
what we think is that those antibiotics
18:55
aren't reaching the infection. You have
18:58
the plastic and between very thin skin
19:01
when they do a mastctomy they cut as
19:04
close to the skin as can get clear
19:06
margins. So that's why the risk for
19:09
infection is much higher than just your
19:11
standard surgery because it's really
19:14
difficult. There's so much lack of blood
19:17
flow and it's hard for an aerial
19:19
antibiotic to get to that area. So I
19:23
went in and that's when I found out
19:25
really quick was that we were going to
19:27
remove the implant spacer, the tissue
19:30
expander.
19:32
And then I said, "Okay, but once you
19:34
take that, then what's there?" Nothing.
19:36
The protocol is to leave that area free
19:39
and clear for 6 months. I ended up
19:42
getting an IV antibiotic that I had to
19:44
take with me for OB. I didn't have to go
19:47
in for infusions. I had that set up and
19:49
then I took it with me and my husband
19:51
had to plug the medicine into the IV
19:55
that went into my arm twice a day for
19:57
seven days and then after that we just
20:00
let everything heal. 6 months go by and
20:02
it was scheduled to put the implant that
20:05
just your finger back in. Real quick,
20:07
your husband did not get on the plane to
20:08
China. He did. He gashed up already on
20:11
it at the time I got the call. So
20:14
luckily I was able to get a hold of him
20:16
and tell him what was going on. And this
20:19
is just another sidebar where at the
20:22
time of my diagnosis I had only lived in
20:25
Miami maybe two and a half years just
20:27
and I thought I don't have a village
20:29
here. What am I going to do? What am I
20:31
going to do? I found out that I did have
20:32
a village that why should you start
20:34
reaching out to your friends that people
20:38
do love you and care for you and they
20:40
really want to help you and the people
20:41
that were just like pick up your
20:43
youngest and take her school bring by
20:45
sir bring by flowers books it really
20:48
made me realize that okay Miami is like
20:50
home and you have a village here
20:52
absolutely
20:52
>> so that's when that kicked in as I spent
20:54
that morning figuring out how I was
20:57
going to take care of the kids in the
20:58
afternoon I boarded my two Labradoodle
21:01
because I'm like, I'm going to need
21:03
recovery and I can't take care of him
21:04
until Hudson is back. So, I knew that he
21:07
were going to be coming back soon. It
21:08
was a really short trip.
21:11
I was ready to go for a short trip, but
21:14
faithfully it was primarily for one
21:16
purpose and they got to turn. That
21:19
turned out really well where I did have
21:21
friends that could help me out. And then
21:24
once I got home that evening that was an
21:26
outpatient and so I was home that
21:28
evening really Yeah. happened really
21:30
quick. When they were expecting me at
21:32
the ER, they had me kick in through the
21:34
ER. The surgeon was there and off we
21:36
went and it was done. And then I know I
21:38
went home that evening and my daughters
21:41
were there and they were wonderful. They
21:44
were aware. They were aware. I had
21:46
already let them know that I wasn't
21:48
going to be home after school, that this
21:50
was happening. And again, different
21:54
reactions, different children. Like my
21:55
oldest was the one who was the point of
21:58
contact since my husband was out in the
21:59
country and the surgeon had actually
22:01
called her and said, "Hey, your mom is
22:03
out of surgery. Here to tell it with
22:05
it."
22:06
>> Wow. I doubt it really. So what a mature
22:10
young lady she was.
22:11
>> Yes. Yeah. That she took that call, took
22:14
the knew what was going on. And then I
22:17
arrived back home. My middle daughter
22:18
was turned into nurse mode where she was
22:21
there to help me to get comfortable. She
22:23
basically tucked me in. How major I was
22:26
prepped up, nice and comfortable,
22:27
brought me whenever I needed. It was a
22:30
surreal kind of family moment where I
22:33
got to see
22:35
how my little girls became big girls a
22:38
little bit in that one afternoon because
22:40
it wasn't play and it wasn't part of the
22:42
process that was not on the slides that
22:44
I showed them. and the resilience that
22:46
had shown them to pitch in. And it was
22:49
my turn to be human and to be
22:52
vulnerable. And the tables got turned
22:54
that evening. Unbeknownst to us, the
22:57
love and the support that they gave me
22:59
made me I feel like it made me heal even
23:01
faster
23:02
>> because I was very proud of how
23:06
resilient they were.
23:07
>> That is so telling of the three young
23:10
ladies that you are raising now. So, I
23:12
commend you for that because that has a
23:15
lot to do with your parenting as well.
23:17
[clears throat]
23:17
>> Absolutely.
23:19
You mentioned that they took the tissue
23:21
expanders out, but you weren't really
23:23
thinking it was going to be for as long
23:26
as you thought, as long as it turned out
23:28
to be. What they had told me that day
23:29
was that it's typically around 6 months
23:32
where you were scheduled to have the
23:33
tissue cleaner put back in. But for me,
23:35
that timing was going to be in the
23:38
middle of the summer, I think, or the
23:39
beginning of the summer. And I said,
23:41
"You know what? This has already
23:43
impacted me more than I really wanted it
23:45
to be. I'm going to schedule it on my
23:47
term." So, I actually pushed it to
23:49
August because we live in Miami. We
23:52
swim, we boat, we're outside a lot. And
23:54
I said, I'm not going to have to have 6
23:56
weeks of recovery where I can't swim and
23:59
I can't do all the things. But also,
24:01
what that meant is that I had to wear a
24:04
prosthetic for all of that time. So,
24:06
that was probably one of the more
24:09
emotionally
24:10
crushing blows was how is this going to
24:13
look? How is this going to work? Are
24:15
people going to be able to tell? But
24:17
back to there's this fantastic
24:19
prosthetic boutique that's in the ground
24:22
floor where women can get wigs and they
24:24
can also get breast prosthetics. And
24:27
there were fabulous people in there that
24:29
that sented me. They talked to me about
24:30
my life and my lifestyle and what I did.
24:33
And they fitted me with two separate
24:35
ones. one for swimming so I can swim,
24:37
one that could get wet and then one that
24:39
was beautiful and it works day to day
24:42
and I had to buy different bras that it
24:44
can a pocket that it could fit into and
24:46
I wore that and I had to kind of modify
24:49
it. Nothing could really be worn without
24:51
there was no push-up, no strap with
24:53
bras. So anything that I wore had to
24:56
really have a neckline structure so that
24:58
I could wear a full bra that would hold
25:00
that prosthetic. It made you feel
25:02
comfortable to walk out the door. It
25:04
did. It was really life-changing having
25:07
those ladies that review were so helpful
25:09
and to have these really nice looking
25:11
prosthetics. So, I managed to get
25:13
through the next few months and then
25:15
scheduled it for August. And I can't
25:17
tell you how happy I would have though
25:19
to get rid of those prosthetics.
25:20
>> Want to put your brand in front of an
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impactful, and aligned with your brand.
25:35
And now back to our conversation. You
25:38
kept a lot of this private. Why talk
25:40
about it now?
25:42
I think I'm one of those people that I
25:45
really like to tell the full story and I
25:48
wanted to be able to tell it at the end
25:50
and looking back and
25:53
there is a lot of uncertainty no matter
25:56
what stage. I think that you always are
25:59
concerned that, oh, okay, we're going to
26:00
have a surgery and they're going to find
26:02
something. There's going to be a
26:03
surprise. There's going to be more to
26:05
it. So, I think in my mind,
26:08
I needed to know that it was going to be
26:10
okay, that everything was fine. And as I
26:14
continually learn more about cancer, the
26:16
way that it behaves, and women's health,
26:19
I do think that it is important to share
26:21
this story because like you said, I
26:23
hadn't heard of DCIS. You hadn't heard
26:24
of DCIS. had to really do a lot of
26:26
research to find out what this all meant
26:29
>> and that yes it is more common than you
26:31
realize cuz you do you start talking to
26:32
other women and I don't know why we
26:37
don't share it more than we do because
26:38
it's a fellowship it's we're in this
26:40
together or here to support one another
26:42
and anytime I meet someone or I'm told
26:45
about someone that just had a recent
26:46
diagnosis I'm always there to talk to
26:49
them tell them my story and you know
26:51
what's funny no two stories are ever
26:53
exactly alike Never.
26:55
>> Never. Lord has had the same diagnosis.
26:57
We just heard her story. Completely
27:00
different from yours. Actually, she
27:02
chose to withhold information from her
27:04
children.
27:05
>> Yeah.
27:05
>> And she felt that she was she goes,
27:08
"Look, I don't know if I made the right
27:09
choice as a mom in not telling them, but
27:11
I wanted to protect them as and I I I
27:14
agree with that." And I think that every
27:16
household is different. You know your
27:17
children best and you know what your
27:19
children can handle and can't. Yeah.
27:20
>> And there's no right or wrong way to
27:22
parent when it comes to the news of a
27:26
cancer diagnosis,
27:27
>> right?
27:28
>> So with that said, I also want to ask,
27:32
you have three daughters. I had asked
27:34
Lord, she has two daughters.
27:35
>> Yeah.
27:36
>> Do you fear for your daughters having a
27:38
predisposition to cancer? I do. Because
27:41
of diagnosis, they will start to get
27:44
their mammogs earlier. I believe it's 10
27:47
years earlier than I had my diagnosis
27:49
which mine was 46. So they'll be more
27:52
like 35 36 when they're getting their
27:54
first mammogs and heaven forbid keeping
27:57
out keeping an eye out for longer thing
27:59
like that before and hopefully that
28:00
doesn't happen but like I had said I
28:02
wasn't in that category I wasn't in a
28:04
high-risisk category I even did genetic
28:07
testing after the diagnosis and I didn't
28:09
have any kind of genetic markers and
28:11
again the genetic marker field it's
28:14
growing there might have been something
28:16
that I have that they haven't found that
28:18
is a correlation so maybe that's TB DBD,
28:21
but as of right now, no, not for me, but
28:24
I do. I And but it's great that
28:26
knowledge is power and that we can get
28:28
ahead of it for them. Now, I have a
28:30
sister that because of this, she's a few
28:33
years older than me, and they made sure
28:35
that she did all of her mammogram. They
28:37
made her do an ultrasound and a breast
28:38
MRI, and everything came back fine. But
28:40
she also did genetic testing and she
28:43
tested positive for a genetic marker
28:45
that makes you much more likely to have
28:48
a handful of cancers including breast
28:50
cancer, um indometrial
28:53
cancer, colon cancer, just to name a
28:56
few, but she hasn't had any kind of
28:59
diagnosis.
29:00
>> Wow.
29:01
>> Yeah. Wow. So again, we're just is
29:04
making her be more aware, more screening
29:07
because she has other things to look at
29:09
other than just breast cancer.
29:10
>> Sure.
29:11
>> Yeah. Well, we'll do the same for the
29:13
girls once they get older and they can
29:14
do any kind of genetic testing to see if
29:16
they have any kind of markers. But yeah,
29:18
I think just staying on top of things
29:20
and getting ahead of the screening
29:22
early. That's what we're hoping
29:24
everybody gets out of our celebration of
29:27
breast cancer awareness month because it
29:30
doesn't hurt to get a mammogram. It's
29:32
uncomfortable,
29:33
>> but it doesn't hurt.
29:35
>> No.
29:35
>> And if there's something that you can do
29:37
to catch things on time,
29:38
>> Yeah.
29:39
>> It's that.
29:39
>> Yeah. Exactly. And that's the thing that
29:42
I asked is I one of the many questions
29:44
that I asked my surgical oncologist was,
29:47
"How do you know which cancers started
29:50
at DCIS?" And she was like, "It really
29:53
the only way that you would know is if
29:54
you had a DCIS patient and they waited
29:58
and they saw like does it progress?" And
30:01
so she said, "No, many do choose to do
30:03
that." But the studies they have done in
30:05
the past shows that 60% of DCIS cancers
30:09
become invasive. So they do eventually
30:11
break out of the milk duct and then they
30:13
become invasive into the other breast
30:15
tissue and then god forbid go to lymph
30:17
nodes or furthermore after that.
30:18
>> Heaven forbid. So yeah,
30:20
>> you've mentioned to me that you feel
30:22
that you cannot call yourself a cancer
30:24
survivor because you didn't go through
30:26
chemotherapy. What kind of survivor's
30:28
guilt is that?
30:29
>> I know I was something that I really
30:31
struggled with and I think it also
30:33
played into the part where I didn't
30:34
really want to talk about my diagnosis
30:37
because I felt like I had met some of
30:40
these women that had gone through so
30:42
much and how can I put myself in the
30:45
same bucket as them. So, it took me a
30:47
lot of time, a lot of contemplating,
30:50
talking. I talked with a therapist for a
30:52
little while to help me to pull my
30:55
feelings together and figure out how I
30:57
could take this, digest it, and move
30:59
forward, learn from it. And in our
31:02
conversations, it's like, I think we
31:04
finally had the one specific
31:06
conversation where we talked about the
31:08
word survivor. And it's just because you
31:10
weren't on the brink of dying does not
31:13
mean that you didn't survive something
31:15
that was really traumatic. So that's
31:18
where I think, okay, now I think I can
31:20
finally
31:21
talk about it and talk about how it was
31:25
a really trying time. No matter how
31:27
things turn out, it's always scary and
31:30
you're learning about something that you
31:32
didn't see coming. It's impacting your
31:33
life. It's impacting your family. And
31:35
then when you get on the other side of
31:36
it, you survived that. Absolutely. Yeah.
31:40
>> How has this experience changed you in
31:42
the way that you see your body and your
31:44
health and your life today?
31:46
>> I have become a I wasn't healthy. I
31:49
thought before I liked to run and do
31:53
moderate exercise. Now I'm incorporating
31:56
more strength training. I'm being really
31:59
aware about the processed food that I
32:01
put in my body. Sugary drinks. Tried to
32:04
really cut back on alcohol consumption.
32:07
I had a period of time where I was like,
32:09
"Okay, I'm not going to drink at all
32:10
anymore." And I moderation is my name of
32:13
my game now because again, I just feel
32:16
like I want to be smart about the
32:18
decisions that I make and use my own
32:22
best judgment and trying to be the best
32:24
that I can be about my own personal
32:26
health. So, I I do feel healthier now
32:29
than I ever have, crazy enough. I do
32:32
feel like I'm eating healthier. I'm more
32:33
active. I have a more well-rounded
32:36
exercise routine than I had before. And
32:38
yeah, I think just staying on top of
32:41
that and not letting it just be
32:42
something that I do and then I forget
32:44
about it and put it in the past like,
32:46
oh, okay, now I feel better. I'm not
32:48
going to continue up on that regimen.
32:50
But it's a lifestyle choice.
32:51
>> Absolutely. If a woman who is newly
32:54
diagnosed and terrified and trying to
32:57
hold it all together for her children
32:59
listening to you right now, what would
33:00
you want her to hear?
33:03
You have to know your own child and know
33:07
what is best for your child, your family
33:11
and for you. I think also
33:14
as a mother that kind of that
33:16
relationship that you have and
33:19
how you want to be able to retell that
33:21
story at the end if that's something
33:23
where you'll feel better having
33:25
protected them from it until you have
33:27
that final outcome and you know that you
33:29
can pack up that story and tell them or
33:31
if you feel like it's something that you
33:33
need them to feel as you go along then
33:37
that is that is ultimately your decision
33:40
and
33:42
trust your mother intuition. Your
33:44
mother's instinct is usually the right
33:46
instinct to go by. Yeah. Well, I want to
33:49
thank you so much for your honesty today
33:51
and for coming forth with your story in
33:54
the hopes that it comforts somebody else
33:56
and even more so that it prompts
33:59
somebody to pick up the phone today and
34:01
call and have their appointment
34:03
scheduled for their mamog because I'm
34:06
sure you're going to touch somebody's
34:08
life today and coming forth with your
34:11
story and I can't thank you enough for
34:13
choosing us to be that vehicle. of
34:15
course. And I thank you for having me
34:17
and for making me feel so so at home and
34:20
comfortable to share my whole life. So,
34:22
we love you truly. And I had no idea you
34:24
were going through any of this and I've
34:26
known you for years already. So, thank
34:29
you. Thank you once again. Please,
34:30
everybody, may this serve as a reminder
34:34
of calling to get your mamog scheduled
34:37
during breast cancer awareness month.
34:40
Detection is everything. I want to thank
34:42
you all for listening today as we shared
34:45
Laura's story with the world. And I want
34:47
to thank you for always counting on me
34:50
to be the one that shares these stories
34:52
and gets them to you. If you've liked
34:54
what you've heard today, please hit the
34:56
subscribe button on YouTube, Spotify, or
34:59
on Apple Podcast.