Stage 3 Breast Cancer: 97 Real Stories
97 stories match breast cancer and stage 3. 82 of them mention chemotherapy.
Stage III HR-Positive Invasive Lobular Carcinoma: Jeanine’s Patient Story
Jeanine had annual mammograms for 10 years because of a family history of breast cancer. In 2016, after years of watching microcalcifications, she noticed that a cyst-like area in her right breast would not go away and that the same breast had slight…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Blanca’s Patient Story
Blanca, 58, found a lump under her right breast during a shower while doing her usual self-exam. She called her doctor the next day, then had a mammogram, ultrasound, and biopsy. The biopsy was positive, and she was eventually diagnosed with Stage III breast…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Kelly’s Patient Story
Kelly was 41 when she shared her Stage III breast cancer experience. She had first noticed redness spreading across her right breast and was diagnosed in her mid-30s, around 2021. Her doctor discussed an estimated 5-year survival rate of 80%. The diagnosis…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Onagh’s Survivor Story
Onagh found a lump in her breast and was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. The news brought fear, grief, resentment, isolation, and a sense of vulnerability. After diagnosis, she increased her exercise and reduced her alcohol intake from 8 drinks to 2…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Angie’s Patient Story
Angie was 40 when shooting pain in her breast and persistent fatigue led to a stage 3 breast cancer diagnosis. She was told that her estimated 5-year survival rate was 70%, a number that added to feelings of fear, worry and being overwhelmed. Chemotherapy…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Alexandra’s Patient Story
Alexandra, 48, was diagnosed with Stage III breast cancer after noticing a lump. She also saw a change in breast shape, skin irritation, thickening, and swelling. The diagnosis made her worried, frightened, overwhelmed, and nervous, but she trusted her doctor…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Aurora’s Patient Story
Aurora, 41, was pregnant in 2021 when half of her breast became hard. She was diagnosed with Stage III breast cancer, a frightening and overwhelming experience that left her worried and powerless. She changed her diet after diagnosis and began eating…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Beth’s Survivor Story
Beth, 41, followed her intuition after persistent breast pain continued beyond her menstrual cycle. She scheduled a mammogram, and by that evening she learned she had Stage III breast cancer. She had no other symptoms, so acting on that pain became a key part…
Read this storyStage III Invasive Lobular Carcinoma: Barb’s Survivor Story
Barb’s invasive lobular breast cancer was found after a routine mammogram in November 2016. She had no symptoms and no family history of cancer, so she did not expect the call-back to become serious. Second-look imaging led to ultrasound and biopsy, which…
Read this storyStage III Invasive Lobular Carcinoma Patient Story
At age 32, this patient was diagnosed in 2018 with an aggressive Stage IIIA breast cancer. The diagnosis was grade 3 invasive lobular carcinoma of the pleomorphic type. Testing showed that the cancer was estrogen-receptor negative, progesterone-receptor…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Christine’s Survivor Story
Christine Cosby was diagnosed with Stage III breast cancer in March 2018 after finding a lump in her right breast. Before treatment began, she joined a pilot study of exercise-based prehabilitation, giving her a practical way to build strength during the 2…
Read this storyStage III Invasive Ductal Carcinoma: Ximena’s Patient Story
Ximena Nardelli, a Colombian woman living in the United States, was diagnosed with breast cancer at 40. She had been careful about yearly breast screening because her sister had breast cancer, but she did not initially feel a breast lump. Before a 2018 trip…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Catalina’s Survivor Story
Catalina was 55 when a small lump in her left breast and tiny prickling sensations made her feel that something was wrong. She was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. The news left her frightened, helpless and nervous…
Read this storyStage III Invasive Ductal Carcinoma: Vanessa’s Survivor Story
Vanessa Sanders had worked at MD Anderson for less than 1 year when she became a patient herself. She had felt a small lump in her left breast for years, but it had not bothered her. Then sharp chest pains began, sometimes so intense that they felt like labor…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Carole’s Survivor Story
Carole, 63, is a breast cancer survivor from the United Kingdom. She was diagnosed with Stage III breast cancer in 2019 after noticing dimpled skin and a small lump around her breast. She did not have other symptoms, so those visible breast changes were what…
Read this storyStage III Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: Mary’s Survivor Story
Mary, a retired woman living in Ireland, was diagnosed with stage 3 triple-negative breast cancer in September 2019. She sought medical help after feeling unusual soreness and discomfort during floor exercises in a yoga class. The diagnosis was especially…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Kathryn’s Survivor Story
Kathryn first noticed swelling between her breasts, changes in breast shape, and irritation in 2019. After seeking medical advice, she was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. The diagnosis left her frightened, overwhelmed, isolated, and worried about what…
Read this storyStage III BRCA2 Breast Cancer: Ashley’s Survivor Story
Ashley was 28 when she was diagnosed with Stage III breast cancer in January 2017. At the time, she was nursing her youngest child and initially thought the lump in her right breast was a clogged milk duct. Her biggest concern after diagnosis was how cancer…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Jacquelyn’s Patient Story
Jacquelyn noticed a suspicious change during a breast self-examination and sought medical care. She was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. Her doctors recommended mastectomy, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy, and she followed the plan. Although she felt…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Melissa’s Patient Story
Melissa Angiolillo was 35 when she was diagnosed with Stage III breast cancer. Alongside fear about the disease, she felt pressure to handle cancer with constant positivity. During chemotherapy, when treatment was taking a physical toll, that expectation…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Elizabeth’s Survivor Story
Elizabeth was 45 when she was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer after first finding a problem in November 2017. Her mother had developed breast cancer at 51, so the family had already been encouraged to remain alert. When an initial appointment was delayed…
Read this storyStage III HER2-Positive Invasive Ductal Carcinoma: Dorothy’s Survivor Story
Dorothy Paterson found a lump in her right breast while showering in 1998, even though her mammogram the year before had been clear. Testing first showed invasive ductal carcinoma, and additional evaluation at MD Anderson revealed HER2-positive breast cancer…
Read this storyStage III Breast Cancer: Zhan’s Survivor Story
Zhan Shen Ya Dian Na, from Taiwan, was diagnosed with Stage III breast cancer in November 2016 after a sharp, localized pain woke her during the night. She was skeptical about the diagnosis and sought a second opinion so she could better understand her…
Read this storyStage III Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: Bridgette’s Survivor Story
Bridgette was 66 when she found a lump under her arm in the shower. Just 3 weeks earlier, her mammogram had been reported as clear. Further testing led to a stage 3 triple-negative breast cancer diagnosis in May 2012. The diagnosis was frightening…
Read this story