What happened, in summary

Caitlin J. was 29 when she found a lump in her breast and had to push for evaluation while uninsured. Planned Parenthood referred her for imaging, and a mammogram showed a mass. Biopsy results came back within 3 days and confirmed Stage IIB ER-positive, PR-positive breast cancer. Caitlin chose breast-conserving lumpectomy because the tumor, at 4 cm, was still within the size range her surgeon would remove that way. Surgery achieved clean margins, but 3 lymph nodes were removed and 1 contained cancer, so chemotherapy was recommended. She also completed 1 round of egg retrieval before treatment. Caitlin’s chemotherapy included 4 rounds of AC over 2 months, followed by 12 rounds of Taxol over 3 months. AC was physically intense, and Taxol brought its own cumulative fatigue. Hair loss was emotionally difficult, though shaving her head with her long-time hairdresser became unexpectedly empowering. Radiation followed for 5 weeks, with 33 treatments. Compared with chemotherapy, radiation felt easier, though fatigue became heavy near the end. Because her cancer responded to estrogen and progesterone, she continued hormone therapy with monthly Lupron shots and daily anastrozole. As of July 2020, Caitlin was navigating survivorship, therapy, support groups, and life with her boyfriend-turned-husband.