Shayna’s Story

Hello! My name is Shayna, and I’m a breast cancer survivor.

I found a lump on my breast in the shower while doing a breast check around the end of 2021. My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer shortly after I was born, so I grew up surrounded by cancer, and unfortunately, she passed away when I was 13; she was 41 years old. I was diagnosed with stage 2 invasive ductal carcinoma on 2/24/22, a month after my 23rd birthday. My tumor marks are ER/PR+, HER2+, BRCA1+. I froze some eggs before treatment; did 3 weeks of hormonal shots, sentinel lymph node removal surgery, and port placement surgery within the same month. I did 16 rounds of chemo with ACT then had a double mastectomy with immediate reconstruction. I underwent 6 weeks of radiation 5 times a week for 30 minutes.

I also did an additional 6 months of oral chemo and a year of immunotherapy with Herceptin and Perjeta. I am now 25, currently in remission, and undergoing passive treatment with Zoladex and Tamoxifen, putting me in a menopausal state for the next 5 years. I will eventually have to get my ovaries taken out in my late 30s/early 40s because of my risk for ovarian cancer.

Currently, I am struggling with being in menopause; my side effects are terrible due to my body not being close to natural menopause. My quality of life is worse now than it was during active treatment; I’m trying my best to stay positive, but it’s hard. I think it’s great that most people focus on those in active treatment, but I find that being on passive treatment, not many people care about my struggles or have the space for me since I’m now “fine” and in remission.

-Shayna