Meet Lizzy
“We need to end breast cancer. It needs to happen, and I hope it happens in my lifetime.”
Lizzy found a lump on her birthday, which turned out to be HER2-positive breast cancer, in October 2021, at 27
Lizzy made an appointment to have a lump she found in her breast checked, which led to a diagnostic mammogram, breast ultrasound and ultimately a diagnosis of triple positive breast cancer. “I knew when the doctor came in and told me that we needed to do an emergency mammogram,” she said. “I knew even more when I saw a single tear rolling down the technician’s cheek. That’s when it really hit me that it wasn’t going to be good.”
Before she began treatment, Lizzy and her husband – then boyfriend – discussed fertility preservation, and she chose to freeze both eggs and embryos. “That was an extremely challenging part as a young adult with a diagnosis like that,” she said.
Lizzy’s treatment included 16 rounds of chemotherapy, followed by a double mastectomy. For the next year, she received regular infusions of targeted therapies for HER2-positive breast cancer. Hormone therapy has put Lizzy into medical menopause, bringing a new wave of side effects. She credits her support system with helping her navigate the ups-and-downs of her experience.
My support system helped carry me through those hardest days, and they’re the same people who continue to show up for me, especially when the rest of the world gets a little quieter.
