WEPPA Physician Dr. Amy Griffin’s Breast Cancer Journey

This Breast Cancer Awareness Month, WEPPA physician Dr. Amy Griffin shares her personal journey through diagnosis and treatment. She hopes her story will inspire women to prioritize regular mammograms because early detection saves lives.

 

My life changed on April 13, 2022. 

I was trying to sleep after my night shift, but I knew my biopsy results would come back at some point during the day.  After waking up several times, I finally saw the results on MyChart: High-grade HER2-positive invasive ductal carcinoma.”  

 

My heart sank…

How could this be happening to me?  I’m healthy. I eat right. I exercise. No one in my family has cancer. This was when I realized firsthand that cancer doesn’t discriminate. It didn’t matter. I was now in the “cancer club,” like so many other people who never did anything wrong. We were all just unlucky.

 

Dr. Graham called me the next morning after my night shift to tell me that while fighting HER2+ breast cancer was going to consume the next 12 months of my life, this was now a diagnosis that oncologists “welcome.” Prior to FDA approval of Herceptin in 2000, I would have been waiting to die. However, Herceptin was now saving thousands of lives as it targeted the HER2 receptor and had good results. 

 

As anyone who has been diagnosed with cancer will tell you, the first couple of weeks are the worst as you get staged and get a plan in place. I couldn’t read about chemo because I would get nauseated and scared thinking about all the side effects. After a couple of weeks and lots of tests, I started chemo with Taxotere, Carboplatin, Herceptin, and Perjeta for stage 2B IDC.  Chemo was cumulative, and I could bounce back after the first couple of rounds, but the last half was rough. My mastectomy was scheduled for a month after my 18 weeks of “bad chemo,” and then I would get another 7 months of just Herceptin and Perjeta.

 

Prior to my diagnosis, I had friends with cancer that I never wanted to “bother” with frequent texts or requests for updates. I prayed for them and sent an occasional card or text. What I realized from my army of friends, family, and especially my WEPPA family is that the frequent texts and warm wishes are not a “bother”, but a source of immense strength!  I LOVED every text, card, meal, flower, gift that everyone sent me!  It kept me going during the worst of times!  Chemo messed with my mind, and I felt depressed towards the end of my bad chemo. I kept thinking that “someone has to be in the 5% recurrence group,” even though I had had a complete pathologic response and knew that 95% of people like me would not have a recurrence.  Now that chemo is over, I realize that my chances are good, and it is easier to remain positive.

 

I am extremely grateful for my good response to chemo and that my recurrence risk is 5%.

I know that others do not respond as well and may never have an end to treatments.  “Survivor’s guilt” is real, and it is the latest emotion that I am experiencing.  I look forward to (hopefully) growing old.  I don’t think I will ever complain about a wrinkle, arthritis, or having to wear reading glasses because all these things mean that I am fortunate enough to actually grow old.  

 

I have met many women who don’t like the color pink or the month of October because it reminds them of their battle with breast cancer. However, I am choosing to embrace pink and the month of October because I know the research funding gained by Breast Cancer awareness has saved my life.