I had adrenal cancer as an infant in 1985, so the word ‘survivor’ has been part of my vocabulary my whole life. Even though I was too young to remember what I went through, my dream was to help other kids like me by becoming a pediatric oncology nurse.
“I don’t want this. I don’t want any of this!” That is all I kept saying as the truth of my stage 2B breast cancer diagnosis with lymph nodes involved slowly sank in.
Heather Kun, MS PhD, is CEO of Fuck Cancer where she leads strategic programming to help prevent, detect and provide support to cancer patients and their families.
My name is Joanne Ameruoso. I am what is known as a Previvor. After having a first-degree relative, (Grandmother, Aunt, and Mother) and losing my grandmother and then my Mother in a very traumatic way to breast cancer, that was the day I decided I was going to be proactive.
On January 7, 2020, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I know no one expects to be diagnosed with cancer, but for me, all I could think was that it was really ruining my year. I was going to turn 50 in September and had plans to celebrate each month. From a food and wine show in Arizona, to Disney, to Vegas, to a family cruise.
Eight years ago, I became a previvor. A Lot has changed since then. Each year I have crossed a new milestone in my life. I am proud to share some of these milestones with all of you, as a reminder that things change