Positive stories, please come out of the woods

[gumoore]

Marcia,

Thank you for your post. It's nice to be reminded that we thrivers need to say hello every now and again.

3 1/2 years ago I received a diagnosis of inflammatory breast cancer, locally advanced (12 positive lymph nodes), HER2+, estrogen +; the statistics I found at the time said that survival was 24 to 36 months.

I am now 41 months since diagnosis and 32 months since surgery.

I wish I could say that I don't worry about recurrence. I do. I guess I find strength in every day, or one day at a time. It's taken a long time to get where cancer is not the entire focus of my life. And I struggle with it every now and again - my boss was diagnosed in 2009, still undergoing treatment; my best friend has battled for 8 years and has entered hospice this month; another friend had recurrence in the same breast 6 years later (and only a year ago). And then I read of the ones our site has lost. It can be very disheartening and emotional.

Stay strong.

Hugs.