Don’t Delay, Like I Did

Accessible document transcript

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SEE PAGE A8
By Marie Stevenson
For Daily Journal Media
I never thought I
would say this, but I am
a breast cancer survivor.
My name is Marie Ste-
venson, and my breast
cancer journey began
in April 2020. I was 49
years old and found a
lump in my breast. It
appeared suddenly, out
of nowhere and had me
puzzled. I came from a
relatively cancer-free
family. None of my close
female relatives (moth-
er, sisters, aunts) had
ever been diagnosed
with breast cancer – or
any other type of can-
cer. I was not obese, ate
a healthy diet, exercised
daily and did not drink
or smoke. I had taken a
genetic test a few years
earlier and did not have
any genetic markers
that would predispose
me to cancer. Neverthe-
less, I was concerned
and made a plan. The
COVID-19 lockdowns
had begun just a few
weeks earlier, and the
fear of COVID-19 in the
country was palpable.
The federal government
was hoping to have
a COVID-19 vaccine
available by the end
of the year. I decided
I would bide my time,
monitor the lump for any
changes and go in to
have it checked out after
the vaccine became
available.
However, on June
4, 2020, my world fell
apart. A group of individ-
uals from the Twin Cities
area had been sending
distressing emails to my
husband and daughters
during 2019 in an ap-
parent attempt to stir up
trouble. They succeed-
ed. Finally, in a severe
escalation in May 2020,
without my knowledge or
consent, they decided to
contact someone from
DON’T DELA Y , LIKE I DID
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Marie Stevenson’s husband, Craig, cared for her throughout her cancer journey, giv-
ing her the support and confidence she needed to fight her battle.SEE STEVENSON A6

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my childhood, of whom
I was deathly afraid.
After finding out about
this contact, I suffered
a panic attack, severe
anxiety, weight loss,
nightmares and flash-
backs to my childhood.
Despite over a dozen
emails from my hus-
band and I, they refused
to stop, and instead
violated my privacy and
safety by sending these
private emails containing
my contact information
directly to this person.
When I found out about
the second contact, I
was terrified and had
another panic attack. I
suffered a total of five
panic attacks over the
course of a year, due to
the repeated contact.
The distress I en-
dured from those events
caused me to virtually
forget about the lump.
By the time I was able
to get fully vaccinated
against COVID-19 in
May of 2021, I was
still so distressed that
,FRXOGQ·WEULQJPVHOI
to go in for a checkup.
I continued to struggle
with anxiety, flashbacks
and nightmares. My
husband would wake
up at night to find me
fully awake and unable
to get back to sleep.
He would have to hold
me to allow me to
calm down enough to
sleep. At times, I would
check the lump, and
due to the anxiety and
fear about the other
matters, I wondered if I
would be better off if it
was cancer, because it
would put an end to my
anxiety and distress.
I was simply not in a
good state of mind.
Despite my reticence,
my husband finally con-
vinced me to schedule
a doctor visit for June
6, 2022, more than two
years after the lump
first appeared. I still
hoped that coming from
a relatively cancer-free
family would mean that
this lump was nothing
to be concerned about.
Unfortunately, I was
terribly wrong.
In what turned into
a whirlwind of events
following my June 6
doctor visit, I was quickly
scheduled for a diagnos-
tic mammogram, ultra-
sound and two biopsies,
which confirmed my
worst fears – cancer – in
more than one loca-
tion. I was devastated.
The realization finally
dawned on me. Because
I had postponed my
diagnosis, the cancer
had been given time to
spread. Instead of one
cancerous lump, there
were three. Instead of
a lumpectomy, I would
have to endure a mas-
tectomy.
My surgery took place
on July 15, 2022, at Lake
Region Healthcare in
Fergus Falls. During the
surgery, my surgeon per-
formed a sentinel lymph
node biopsy (SLNB) to
determine if the cancer
had spread to my lymph
nodes. Unfortunately, it
had, which means that
the possibility of recur-
rence is significantly
higher. The two-year
delay in the diagnosis
of my cancer was been
a painful lesson, since
once cancer reaches the
lymph nodes, it can trav-
el anywhere in the body.
My support through
the entire cancer journey
was incredible. The staff,
doctors and my surgeon
were very competent,
caring and reassuring to
me along the way. My
husband of almost 35
years, Craig, normally
a computer network
technician and CEO
of our own company,
took time away from his
work to care for all of
my daily nursing needs.
He was there for me in
the hospital, he regularly
changed the dressing on
my wounds at home and
provided me with the
vital emotional support
that I needed during
that time. He repeatedly
assured me that nothing
would change how he
felt about me — not the
cancer, the surgery or
whatever happened in
the days going forward.
It gave me the confi-
dence I needed to fight
this battle.
My older daughter
recorded a number
of piano songs that I
could play to alleviate
my stress in the early
days after my diagno-
sis, while my younger
daughter went on eBay
to buy cancer hats for
us, in case “we” had
to go through chemo
together. My extended
family, consisting of my
mother, five brothers
and two sisters, were
also very supportive,
as I received a steady
stream of encouraging
texts, phone calls and
emails.
As of now, I am on a
hormone blocker (tamox-
ifen) to try to prevent a
recurrence. The side ef-
fects are bothersome, but
manageable. My family
and I are praying that my
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any other organs. I live
each day wondering
whether I could have pre-
vented the mastectomy
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of my lymph nodes by
earlier detection. I will
undoubtedly be looking
over my shoulder for the
remainder of my life, as I
watch for signs of a pos-
sible recurrence. Even
though I did not have any
genetic or other risk fac-
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exercised daily and ate
a healthy diet, I was still
diagnosed with breast
cancer at age 51, and it
was present in my body
at age 49.
According to the
American Cancer Soci-
ety, one in eight women
will get breast cancer in
their lifetime, more than
300,000 new cases
are diagnosed each
year and about 42,250
women die of breast
cancer each year.
Regular breast cancer
screenings and prompt
attention to suspicious
lumps are important
parts of making sure
WKDWDZRPDQGRHVQ·W
become a statistic.
Early breast cancer
detection and treatment
saves lives!
Because of my own
experience, I want to
alert other women to
take proper care of
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off your yearly mam-
mogram, the way I did.
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nosis and treatment,
the way I did. Most
importantly, if you detect
a lump, do not delay in
seeking medical advice
as I did, no matter what
else might be going on
in your life. My family is
still intact and I hope to
be around for my hus-
band and my daughters
for many years to come.
If I had waited any lon-
ger or if my cancer had
been more aggressive
or more widespread,
the outcome might have
been much different.
STEVENSON: Urges to seek medical advice at first detection
Continued from page A1