Laura finished her cancer 1.0 treatment with her sister in the hospital with some champagne
and photos. Laura got a tattoo to mark her finished treatment plan and for living without cancer,
and she tells us she is a mother, wife, manager, and a very hardcore planner. Following Laura’s
point of being a planner, she notes that cancer is never in anyone’s plan and it was certainly not
in hers when 4.5 years later, she found out she had stage four breast cancer that had
metastasized into her liver.
Laura said she was confused, it had nearly hit the five year mark for her being cancer-free and
she was just feeling very tired. Her sister encouraged her to go to the hospital one day as she had severe abdominal pain and they thought her gall bladder may be the cause. It turned out
that her gallbladder was great, but her liver was fully metastasized. Laura said she was alone
and drove herself home to tell her family that they would now be on the cancer 2.0 plan that
none of them were at all prepared for.
Laura was admitted a few days later to start her chemotherapy as the doctors told her she had a
few days to turn her plan into action or she would have no options for treatment. Her daughter
came home from Australia, her son was terrified, and her husband had to shave her head for the second time. They took family photos before she lost her hair and she said she had dark
thoughts of the photo being shown at her memorial. Cancer 2.0 she says, would be a hard fight and an endless treatment plan.
However, within a month of Laura’s strong fight and 2.0 plan – her liver enzymes were improving
and so she created a new plan instead. Laura went back to her team at work, adjusting her lifestyle and schedule around her treatments and scans, and making sure she made time for
herself and her health. She had the amazing support of her family, her work team, and a new
team she met on CancerConnection where they joke around, share stories, and comment on
each other’s posts.
Laura said she is stable today and her scans are her checkpoints in her new plan. As much as
no one is prepared for this journey, she said that living is the ultimate plan and she will adjust
her current plans in whatever way she has to in order to achieve that goal. To listen to Laura’s
whole journey, visit the link here from the Canadian Cancer Society: