At just 32 and after recently having a baby, Sabrina Lucius never expected to be diagnosed with breast cancer. After a mammogram found a small mass that initially did not show signs of being malignant, she trusted her instincts and pushed for a biopsy. It revealed she had breast cancer.
Breast cancer rates are rising faster among women 49
and younger compared to older age
groups. That's according to research
from the American Cancer Society. Younger women who are
diagnosed also face other challenges such as fertility
and job interruption. We found out
a program at Dana-Farber is helping those women navigate survivorship
and thrive after treatment.
I was just shocked. Like, this must be a mistake.
This must be for somebody else.
This can't be right. I'm only 32. I just had a baby.
There's no way I have breast cancer.
But when Sabrina Lucchesi woke up one morning with a sharp,
stabbing pain in her left breast,
she called her doctor to get it checked out.
When her mammogram showed a small mass,
she was told it didn't show any signs of being a malignant tumor.
Ideally, that's supposed to make you feel better.
But when you're having breast pain
and you're told you have a mass in your breast,
I didn't like the idea of just hanging around
and waiting to see if it grew.
Sabrina took it upon herself to get a biopsy.
That ultimately revealed she did in fact have breast cancer.
I think about that moment a lot still
because it was kind of a fork in the road of I could
go one way and just ignore this and hope it goes away,
or I could face it head on and
get an actual answer.
After 12 rounds of chemotherapy and a double mastectomy,
Sabrina completed treatment.
However, she is still on one medication and is working
with Dr. Ann Partridge at Dana-Farber on her fertility plan.
Our job at Dana-Farber is to help
to support people along that whole journey,
but particularly as they launch into the rest of their lives,
that survivorship period.
Dana-Farber's Young and Strong program helps young breast
cancer patients navigate their lives beyond their treatment
through its website, in-person, and virtual events.
It's very, very helpful during that survivorship phase
when a lot of the care goes away, but the need does not for patients.
And they're still clamoring for support,
especially someone looking in the middle of the night for a symptom
that they have and where can they get credible information.
We know that they can get that through our website.
Dr. Partridge says she is researching why more younger women across
the U.S. are getting diagnosed with breast cancer.
She says it's important to know
your family history and also know your body,
because generally women under 40
are not screened unless they are in a higher-risk group.
Our screening tools, at least right now,
are not good enough for population-based screening for under 40.
I am hopeful that's going to change
and we're going to get better at screening
and determining who's at higher risk, even in their 20s and 30s.
That's why Sabrina is encouraging young women like herself to be aware
and advocate for themselves,
because with early detection comes a better prognosis,
and for Sabrina, a silver lining.
I'm much more confident. I'm much more sure of myself.
It's so easy to take inventory of what matters and what doesn't,
where I want to place my energy, and more importantly,
where I don't want to place my energy.
And Sabrina is part of a nonprofit Living Beyond Breast Cancer
where she helps women through the mental
and physical challenges of a diagnosis.
Also, Dana-Farber is working to expand its Young and Strong program
so it'll be accessible to more people
who aren't able to get treatment through the hospital.
