What happened, in summary

Bethany was 34 when breast cancer was first found in both breasts and a lymph node. Earlier, she had felt breast and underarm lumps but pursued thermography and other nonstandard approaches before ultimately getting a mammogram and ultrasound that showed suspicious findings. Her team staged the cancer as late Stage II or early Stage III. The cancer was hormone-positive and ER-positive, and the recommended plan was aggressive: 5 to 6 months of chemotherapy, then surgery, 6 weeks of radiation, and 5 to 10 years of hormone therapy. Bethany completed chemotherapy, chose a double mastectomy with tissue expanders, and had lymph nodes removed. Pathology after surgery showed no evidence of disease. She then had radiation that summer and started tamoxifen. After treatment, Bethany rebuilt her life, separated from her husband, moved to Colorado, and found a new relationship. Then persistent low back pain became severe enough that she pushed for imaging. MRI showed lesions throughout her bones, and PET scan later showed cancer in the liver, bones, lymph nodes, and stomach. She was diagnosed with Stage IV metastatic breast cancer. Two unnamed chemotherapy drugs shrank the disease, and she transitioned to maintenance treatment with a monthly infusion, a hormone-therapy shot, and daily pills. As of December 2022, she was living with metastatic breast cancer and focusing on living fully.