Teresa's Breast Cancer Fight

UPDATE 2/15/2024: Message from Teresa (my sister)

This past few weeks has definitely been a challenge. I received more devastating news from the results of the PET scan. The cancer is being extremely aggressive and is now pretty much spread every where including my brain and pancreas. The first week of treatment left me beyond miserable. I met with My doctor last Friday and she asked me to at least complete 3 rounds of chemo and she would reduce the strength to better manage the side effects. She also spoke with my radiation doctor and I will be starting radiation next Weds to 3 of the 6 lesions on my brain. This will be 5 days. Then I will start a 2nd round of radiation for the other 3. He doesn't want to do all at once due to the location of where the lesions are located. I did agree to this plan and had my 2nd Chemo this past Monday. It went better than the 1st one did. Thank-you Jesus side effects are still kicking my butt some days, I have been able to go in to the infusion center for fluids.

We will check in again on a few weeks to see if any of this is actually working. Triple negative Breast cancer is a beast and relentless but I will continue fighting because I have Jesus on my side and all things are possible through him❤️

Prayer warriors please pray for my family and for this treatment plan to work!! And if you can, would you please share my go fund me page?

UPDATE 02/02/2024

message from Teresa:

Ok....time for another update. I know I left you hanging but I needed to get some things done before I updated everyone. So there was not a PE or pneumonia showing on the CT scan. However it did show that my lungs were worse and the cancer has now moved into my liver and both of my kidneys. I met with my oncologist yesterday morning to go over options and the prognosis is not good. If I choose to NOT start treatment ASAP then I was given just a few weeks to live. If I decided to jump back into the battle and fight that meant that I would start Chemo again and it would be hell like the first go around. With the Chemo and it actually working, I was given maybe a year. If this chemo doesn't work then I will be going on comfort measures. I was told that I probably wont be able to work during this treatment so I am taking a medical leave. We had a family meeting last night so we are geared up for this final fight. Please say a prayer for us and a prayer that this drug works ❤️

Nov. 5, 2023

Time for an update-First the good news! I have been back to work for 3 months and it feels like I never left! I love being back with my elderly population! I love what I do and Love my team!

Now grab a tissue and sit down I have some not so great news. I had a PET scan and an MRI a few weeks ago. The noggin was all good but the PET scan showed the cancer is now in my spin- 3 lesions at T1 to T3. I also have another compression fracture at T1. There are also multiple nodules in both of my lungs.There is about a 5% chance the lung nodules are from the infusion I get every 2 months for the colitis. My oncologist does believe that those are the cancer so she ordered a lung biopsy to check for sure. So far what I know is that I am now stage 4 and we no longer are aiming for a cure, we are aiming for remission. I know that I have to have 10 rounds of radiation to my spine. I know that I will be on chemo for the rest of my life. I know that this is NOT going to be like before- I shouldn't lose my hair, I should be able to function and continue to work. I had the lung biopsy this past friday- and all I will say about that is it did not go well. 5 samples were taken but they don't think they are good samples. I should know in the next few days. If they are not good I have to go back for a 2nd one under full anesthesia. I have always been honest about the type of cancer I have and that it's very aggressive and had a high risk of returning. I just wasn't prepared for it to be so quickly. Yes.....I am pissed off. Yes.....I have bawled my eyes out. Yes....I have grieved. I have been throught it all (and am still going through it) but I am not a quitter! I am a warrior and I will fight this asshole again! I have all of my prayer warriors who have prayed me through everything and I know we aren't stopping now! So what do I need? I need you to pray for this biopsy to be successful! I need you to pray for my family, we have been through more than enough this past few years. I am sending all of you big hugs! Now dry those tears, we have a fight to win

My sister, Teresa Berry Thomason, was diagnosed with Triple Negative Stage 2A Breast Cancer in May 2022. She began weekly chemo infusions in June, which has been a battle, as some of you already know if you follow her on Facebook. The Taxol chemo drug did not go well for her, and after 2 attempts, Dr. Stroh had to change this out for another chemo drug. Things were going as well as they could when Teresa tested positive for COVID and then started having constipation issues from the drugs. She was told to drink magnesium citrate to help relieve the constipation, but this only snowballed into 2 trips to one ER where the doctors and nurses did nothing to help but give her a shot for the pain and send her home. It wasn't until the third trip to the ER at a different hospital that she got a team of doctors and nurses who cared and have been amazing in helping Teresa.

Today is August 3rd, and Teresa is still hospitalized. The colonoscopy was yesterday, and we are praying for answers this morning. Due to this complication, Teresa has missed 2 weeks of her chemo infusions. Initially, she was scheduled weekly for 24 weeks, this could change, but we don't know yet. This has been a battle from day one and will continue to be a battle until she rings that bell on her last chemo treatment with tears of joy.

Following her chemo, she will undergo a double mastectomy with possible radiation.

As you can imagine, the financial burden of this battle will be difficult. We have set up a Go Fund Me page to assist with Teresa's medical expenses. While undergoing chemo, she has had to take a leave of absence from her job. Please pray for Teresa as she wades through this journey. Your support means so much to her!

We know Teresa will beat this; we just need your help and support along the way.

Thank you for your love & support!!!

#FightLikeAGirl #CancerSucks #BreastCancer #ChemoSucks

Other ways to donate if you prefer not to use Go Fund Me:

Venmo: @Shelly-Pearson-7 (Please note that it is for Teresa)

PayPal: @22mavericks (Please note that it is for Teresa)