What happened, in summary

Suzy was a respiratory therapist with 17 years of experience when her own symptoms were dismissed. In late 2022, she noticed a lump under her collarbone and frequent pain in her left breast. A clear mammogram the year before made clinicians less concerned, and she was told stress could explain what she felt. Suzy trusted her intuition and pushed to have the lump removed, but pandemic-related backlogs meant she waited about 1 year. In February 2023, surgery that was expected to be straightforward instead opened the door to a much bigger diagnosis. Over the next 2 months, Suzy had scans, tests, and 3 bone biopsies. In April 2023, she learned she had de novo Stage IV metastatic breast cancer with spread to her bones. Her oncologist gave a 2- to 3-year prognosis, and she began targeted treatment in May 2023. By December 2023, she was told there was no evidence of active disease. As of July 2025, Suzy was living in the in-between: grateful for that response, still aware of the seriousness of metastatic breast cancer, and focused on travel, family, hope, and trusting her instincts.