Sherrie Antoszewski
Surviving with Metastatic Breast Cancer – 17 years!
As I celebrate 17 years of survival with Metastatic Breast Cancer and as more and more celebrities share their breast cancer stories and tell how important it is to have early detection, I wanted to say that I couldn’t agree more. Women need not to be scared to go in for their yearly exams. The earlier anything is detected, the better chance you have of beating Breast Cancer or any other life threatening disease for that matter. I can tell you that I speak of this from true experience.
I am a 42 year old Breast Cancer Survivor, who has been battling the disease since the young age of 25. 17 years, 5 occurrences, 8 surgeries, 13 different chemotherapy drugs and countless visits to my Oncologist and Nursing Staff – I am still fighting and surviving! It’s not easy all the time, but I am still able to be in love with my husband, watch my daughter grow up, laugh with my friends and family and most importantly live. I have seen so many women over the years, young and old, lose their battle with the disease. I have felt the pain with the loss of my twin sister 8 years ago at the age of 34 and to this day, wonder if she would still be alive if she was as diligent with her care as I am. Yes – I would say I probably had a little luck on my side to start with as I was 25 years old when initially diagnosed, but I listened to my body. I knew something wasn’t right and I wasn’t scared to go to the doctor. I am living proof that with EARLY DETECTION, SELF AWARENESS, QUALITY CARE, POSITIVITY, SUPPORT from family and friends, and TREATMENT you can have a quality life. Even though my Cancer will never be cured and I live wondering what might happen in the future, I live in the moment. Life is too short and we all should celebrate it. At the end of the day, YOU AND ONLY YOU are in charge of your body, but if you ignore it, or the messages out there saying to see your doctor for a screening, NOTHING can be changed. PLEASE BE DILIGENT IN THE CARE OF YOUR BODY.