Cancer. That one word brings up a slew of stories, pain, emotion, and at times, triumph. October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, often symbolized with a pink ribbon, and its goal is to raise awareness and funds to combat this disease.
On Oct. 26, the Women’s Center is partnering with the Residence Hall Association to sponsor a 5k and Health Fair at the Nature Preserve called “Roar for the Cure.” It aims to educate about the healthy lifestyle practices that can contribute to cancer prevention, while raising awareness about breast cancer risks, screening and resources.
According to cancer.org, “breast cancer starts when cells in the breast begin to grow out of control. These cells usually form a tumor that can often be seen on an x-ray or felt as a lump. The tumor is malignant (cancerous) if the cells can invade surrounding tissues or spread to distant areas of the body,” and can affect both women and men.
Although for some patients, the diagnosis comes as a shock, for FIU professor, Susan Jacobson, her story is much different.
“I suspected that I had breast cancer, so my immediate reaction was that I was glad my medical team was gearing up to determine treatment for me,” Jacobson said.
She was diagnosed in March 2015 with Stage 3, HER2-positive breast cancer. HER2-positive breast cancer is a less common form, occurring in about 20 percent of breast cancer patients. Breast cancers with high levels of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2, HER2, are more likely to spread and less likely to respond to treatment.
Breast cancer is divided into four stages. Stage 0 is when there is no evidence of cancer cells or non-cancerous abnormal cells invading neighboring tissue. In Stage 1, the cancer cells are breaking through or invading surrounding breast tissue.
Stage 2 is when the tumor has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm on the same side as the breast cancer. In Stage 3, the tumor in the breast is more than two inches in diameter across and the cancer is extensive in the underarm lymph nodes or has spread to other lymph nodes or tissues near the breast. Stage 4 is when the cancer has spread beyond the breast, underarm and internal mammary lymph nodes to other parts of the body near to or distant from the breast.
Jacobson was treated with Taxotere, Herceptin and Perjeta and received these drugs every three weeks over four months. Herceptin and Perjeta are targeted therapies – they kill HER2-positive cancer cells and leave other cells alone. “I am still receiving these drugs every three weeks and probably will continue to do so for another couple of years,” she said.
Taxotere is a cancer medication that interferes with the growth and spread of cancer cells in the body and is met with a few side effects. Jacobson explains that Taxotere kills non-cancerous cells that are fast-growing, including hair follicles, which is why people lose their hair with chemotherapy.
“My hair fell out in handfuls about two weeks after my first treatment with Taxotere. I was pretty bald until the end of September when we discontinued Taxotere,” said Jacobson.
Despite the side effects of the treatments she was receiving, Jacobson remained positive. Presently, Jacobson feels much better and after having her annual PET-CT –a full body-scan that checks for cancer– was found to have no evidence of disease, putting her in remission. Because she was diagnosed with Stage 3 cancer, her doctors worry about recurrence and require her to be scanned every year.
Jacobson recommends going to websites such as breastcancer.org or inspire.com for those who have been diagnosed with any type of cancer. The discussion groups on the websites allow anyone to connect with hundreds of people with the exact same diagnosis and to collect knowledge about the disease. It also offers comfort to those who are going through or have gone through the same treatments and side effects.
“My doctor, who is the head of oncology at Mount Sinai Medical Center, sometimes jokingly asks me what new things I learned online that he does not know,” she said.
The 5k and health awareness fair takes place at 5 p.m. and will have music, water stations, snacks, and giveaways.
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