Joanie says, “Not Today Cancer!”

I’m Joanie, and it’s been a crazy month. One afternoon in late July, I felt an M&M-sized lump in my right nipple. Just a regular M&M, not even a peanut one. I figured it was a cyst or something, but I was due for a mammogram and made an appointment. I enjoyed my 57th Birthday, August 7th, by kayaking in La Jolla without concern. Imaging results dictated a special mammogram and a biopsy. I received a triple positive, HER-plus, stage two, class three diagnosis on August 11th. Everything moved so fast! There was a flurry of appointments and overwhelming, scary, consults. My saving grace was I had an amazing ten-day sailing and scuba diving vacation planned in Bonaire on September 1st, which I was not about to give up even if it meant I’d drown choking on my tumor! I returned from the trip of a lifetime with images of flying fish, eagle rays, and sunsets etched in my mind's eye for future playback while in the chemo chair. More tests, and then my first chemo session on September 18th.

I work as a tour guide in San Diego Bay, as well as Event Staff for numerous DMCs, but the side effects from chemo and dangers of infection aren’t allowing me to continue anytime soon. My Leave of Absence request has been denied so I’ll be using my SDI while waiting for my stamina to rebound. I’m told chemo is cumulative, so my return to the workforce is unlikely for a few months. I’d very much like to keep my awesome medical care team at Scripps, and I’ll be navigating that through COBRA and MediCal. If cancer doesn’t kill you, the paperwork will!

Any funds kindly contributed to this campaign will ease stress due to concerns of paying out-of-pocket medical costs, prescription medications, rent, insurance, etc. for the next several months, and allow me to concentrate on my healing. I’ll be shaving my head before my hair falls out (I’ve gotten bald caps for my friends and everyone is taking a whack first), and letting my gym, Orange Theory, use my badass bald image to motivate women to stay strong. My motto during this journey is “Courage is Contagious / Saltwater Cures Everything.” I want to inspire those one out of eight women who get breast cancer to make the best of a truly ghastly situation. If I can’t die laughing, then I’m just not gonna die! I haven’t much blood family, but I do have a dark sense of humor and some incredible friends who will help me get through this with grace and laughter. I hope to return to intermittent Event work during my “good days” beginning in November and hope that after anticipated surgery in February, I’ll be back in the saddle by May and ready to resume a somewhat normal life while on hormone therapy. Meanwhile, bring a lunch and strap in. It’s gonna be a wild ride!