A 26-Year-Old Bride's Mission to Overcome Breast Cancer

Marjie Stromberg knows all too well the physical and emotional toll caused by cancer. As a child, she spent years fighting to survive leukemia. Now, Marjie is a breast cancer patient who was diagnosed at age 26, shortly after her fiancé proposed. In her blog, she shares honest reflections on the struggles and joys of planning her wedding, and her future, while coping with the effects of the cancer surgeries. Marjie is a vibrant young woman on a journey to recovery, and she has a message for you: Every woman needs to do self-exams. Read on for more of her story, but first find out what Marjie’s fiancé, Sean, has experienced since her diagnosis:

We were at my parents’ house to celebrate Passover. The house had already been prepared for the holiday. After breakfast, much remained to be done to get ready for the first Seder. Then Marjie’s phone rang.

Something told me, deep down, the news wouldn’t be good. Marjie ran upstairs to take the call. I sat on the bed with her. I could hear through the phone the doctor talking. The expression on Marjie’s face said the news wasn’t good. With family downstairs, we sat in my bedroom for some time. I didn’t know what to do … didn’t know what to say. We would get through this together.

Leaving Marjie in that room was difficult … just stepping away and closing the door, I felt like I was abandoning her. My family — only minutes before, were happily preparing our house for the Passover celebration — had waited anxiously for our news. No words were necessary; only my parents’ embrace could attempt to comfort me as I completely broke down.

The one person I cared about most in the world was just diagnosed with breast cancer. I was confused, had many questions and didn’t know what would lie ahead — doctor’s appointments, treatment, surgery. What I did know is that we would change forever. This change would be good in the end, and believe it or not, bring us closer together. I knew that I would be there for her no matter what, as I knew she would be for me.

Over the past five months, I have seen the woman I love in pain. She did it with courage, strength and grace. She has decided to not let this disease run her life. Breast cancer doesn’t just affect the women whose bodies it attacks. It affects the families of the women, and their friends. It is our hope that people will learn from our experience, so that if they ever find themselves in this unfortunate situation, they will be better prepared for it. We also hope that young women will learn that breast cancer can and does affect younger women.

Marjie and I will beat this cancer.

How did you react to the news of your breast cancer diagnosis?

My main reaction, and there was a lot that followed, was You’ve got to be kidding me. I found the lump by myself doing a regular self-exam and I had numerous doctors I called right away. Some doctors told me, “You’re so young; it’s probably just a cyst.” I even had someone tell me not to lose any sleep over it. In my mind, I was thinking, It probably is nothing. I’m 26. This is not that common in people my age. I was trying to convince myself that they were right. They’re doctors. They know better. But I had a feeling that something wasn’t right.

It was extremely, extremely shocking. There was a two- to three-week period from the time I found a lump to the time that they called me and told me it was cancer. For those three weeks, there was a lot of going back and forth in my mind, telling myself, It’s probably OK, and then asking, What if it’s not? I was driving myself crazy.

Were you mad?

Yes, and I still am.

How do you deal with the emotions that accompany breast cancer at age 26?

I go back and forth every day between a million different emotions. Sometimes I’m hopeful. To be completely honest, I have a lot of doubt. I think, If this could happen to me right now, there’s nothing off the table.

I’m hopeful that this specific treatment will work for my breast cancer now and that it’s going to be taken care of. I have new fears about it returning, new fears about getting it in the other breast or about getting another cancer again. In terms of the future, I’m very anxious about it all the time. I think it’s normal, considering what I’ve been through, but it’s something I’m gong to try to work on. I really don’t want to live like that. I don’t want to be constantly nervous or scared or anxious about something that I probably don’t have any control over.

Where are you in your treatment right now?

I had a mastectomy on May 19. During that procedure, I had a tissue expander put in. The purpose is to stretch my skin and muscle to prepare for an implant. I have that in right now, and every week or so I have it filled with saline and it expands gradually.

Is that painful?

Yes, very painful. It’s most painful the day of the expansion and then a few days after. Once it settles in, it’s better, but it’s always tight and uncomfortable.

Two weeks ago I had another surgery for more skin to be removed and to get what’s called a margin around the tumor. When I had my mastectomy, I had all of my breast tissue removed, but I still had all my skin on the outside. Because of how close my tumor was to the skin, they wanted to get a better margin around it to help prevent recurrence and make sure it hasn’t spread.

The type of cancer I had wasn’t invasive, so I didn’t need to have chemotherapy, and also I caught it really early. We just found out from this past surgery that my margins came back clean, which means they didn’t find any more cancer, so I won’t need radiation.

After you were diagnosed, how soon after did you know you would need a mastectomy?

There are about two weeks of testing when the doctors find out about the cancer — how big it is, how advanced it is, what stage it’s in, etc. Based on the tests, they determine with you the best course of action in terms of what type of surgery would be most beneficial.

Have you thought about the implants, and how your body will look and feel different?

Yeah, I have. It is hard to get used to. I’ve talked to a lot of other breast cancer survivors who have had different types of implants, and they’ve had really good stories about them. It’s weird because this is something that will be part of my life forever. I’m trying to look at the positive — I’ll look pretty good after this!

Continue reading Marjie's story, and find out what she knows now, that she didn't know at the time of her diagnosis...