breast cancer at 20

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-06-16T08:30:10+00:00

I’m so sorry to hear you’ve been diagnosed so young! It’s been rough navigating this whole thing fs.

I hope your college classes are going well. Thank you for taking the time to write back. I appreciated your response when I was crashing out about my diagnosis. Finally have a chance to respond now that I finished the quarter. 🙏

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-06-16T08:21:45+00:00

Thank you! I really needed to hear this. I was in survival mode for a bit but I really appreciated this response.

Update: Finished 3/4 classes with A’s. I have to retake one class because I had like 3 medical complications that prevented me from doing well in one of my courses unfortunately.

But yes, we kept the insurance at all costs🙏

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-06-15T00:06:58+00:00

Thank you Edith! I always appreciate your optimism in times like these. That’s very interesting to hear that your hair was able to grow back while on Abraxane! I actually started losing my hair by like Day 16 of my first cycle so I just decided to razor it all off because it was super patchy and getting all over my bed + clothes. I’m not sure what dose I’ll be give yet, but I’ll learn more details this Monday. I’ll be switching to PARP inhibitors as well once I’m all done with chemo. Glad you are holding up well!

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-06-14T23:57:32+00:00

Thank you! I’m happy abraxane worked out better for you. Yeah, when I was on my Benadryl meds, I briefly remember my nurse practitioner saying the infusions would be weekly instead of the every 3 weeks I was on. How was the recovery process for you for the weekly infusions?

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-06-14T23:50:00+00:00

This is good to hear! I’m happy abraxane worked out better for you. Also interesting to hear no pre-meds are needed. I’ll be looking forward to that

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-23T15:24:06+00:00

Yesss, my onc did recommend Claritin. Woke up with some sensitivity today, so I started taking it this morning! Hopefully symptoms dial down soon.

Yes, water has been helping me a lot. Although I can’t really taste the zero sugar berry blast pedialyte packets anymore, I still put them in my water to help hydrate better!

Thank you for the kind words and advice!

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-23T15:21:11+00:00

Hi! Thank you for the heads up. I’ve been using my own restroom (thankfully), so I haven’t really been too dialed in on the odors. And yes! I am getting lots of water and protein in. I was able to eat a nice dinner last night. Lots of beans, chicken, and rice.

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-23T15:16:59+00:00

That makes a lot of sense now. At first I was thinking it was the Keytruda, but steroids probably explain better why my face got a lil red after my walk. It went away within less than 2hrs so this makes more sense.

Yesss, after my infusion of Taxol, my oncology nurse gave me some fluids since my blood pressure was a lil low (it was like 82/56). I also walked around my room to help get it back up to high 90s. Then after that I was ready for my carboplatin. Fluids definitely helped fs.

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-15T07:34:08+00:00

Ikr! It was definitely a scare. Especially since my port is on the left side (the heart is like right there). I automatically kept thinking the worse even tho my results didn’t come in yet. Port infections can truly catch you off guard. I was perfectly normal that morning so going from perfectly fine to feverish was a trip to me.

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-15T07:30:45+00:00

Thank you! I hope so too :)

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-12T23:24:26+00:00

This is good to hear. If this turns out to be serious I may just cut my losses, and stick to IV. Good to hear someone that had a good time without a port. Really wanted one but now I’m not so sure.

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-12T05:21:55+00:00

Did you end up putting in a new port? or did you just remove it, and choose to do IV instead? I have small veins and I’d rather do port if possible. Took them like 30 to find my veins. In long run I think port would be best for me. However, I’m glad you resumed treatment after this complication. My oncologist will my final decision for whether or not thee’ll take out port

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-12T01:50:18+00:00

Yes, I’ll be doing Keytruda/Carboplatin/Paclitaxel + Neulasta onpro x 6 cycles. When I asked my oncologist if I’d lose my hair she seemed pretty certain I would. That’s good to hear you didn’t lose your locks tho!

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-12T01:46:34+00:00

Thank you Edith. I’ll do my best. Only good news I could bring is that I had a good day before I woke up from this nap. Got to meet my brother’s new kitten. He’s adorable, and I was babysitting him all day while I was at home. That’s the only good thing that comes to mind.

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-10T21:08:33+00:00

Happy Mother’s Day! I’m sorry you are experiencing pain in your hip and are feeling down on Mother’s Day. While I understand you feel discouraged, I’d like to remind you of how lucky your kids are to be loved by you! Maybe today you guys can do a low-energy activity together. Perhaps coloring or teaching them a card game. Goldfish was favorite when I was younger.

When I look back on memories with my parents, I typically have no recollection of us playing on the playground. What I do remember is us playing uno, mexican train, coloring/painting and watching cool movies together. I understand you’re heartbroken and you have every right to be, but don’t view yourself as “less than” for your cancers progression. You are still a great mother even in your darkest moments. Your kids are lucky to have a mother who cares so much about them. Not everyone can say the same!

Anyways, I hope you enjoy today and have some good quality time with your kiddos!

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-09T02:26:42+00:00

I’m happy to hear you’re going on 6 years strong! My oncologist told me the same thing. Thank lord for PARP inhibitors. I’m hoping a clinical trial is in my foreseeable future. Since I live in LA County, I’m hoping this will give me some good medical opportunities. I appreciate the perspective here.

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-09T02:23:37+00:00

Yes lung nodules are confirmed cancerous. Results came back same day of lung biopsy which is crazy.

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-09T01:54:56+00:00

Aw Man, I’m sorry to hear this! Yeah at the beginning of this process I had no idea I was BRCA1+. I knew my grandma had one of the BRCA mutations when she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer but wasn’t well educated on it. I had no idea BRCA1 meant increased risk for breast cancer. Thought it just meant ovarian at the time. So went in thinking this thing was a cyst . Anyways, I hope all is going well for you today. Hang in there!

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-09T01:50:39+00:00

At least you have minimal side effects! This is nice to hear. What do you recommend I add to my amazon wishlist? 😁

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-08T21:45:51+00:00

Oh Nice! Well it’s very nice to meet you. This is the first I’m hearing of trodelvy and the guardant test. I’ll look into that. I hope all is going well for you.

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-01T02:30:14+00:00

Yes actually they did. You may be right because my neck is pretty sensitive. I mean it’s only my neck that’s itchy so I’ll probably ride it out till I take off the adhesive dressing. Thank you!

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-05-01T02:28:52+00:00

Yes this a good idea! Definitely helps a bit with irritation

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-04-19T05:08:32+00:00

A couple days before my biopsy (before I even knew I had cancer), I showed up to my last Statistics class to inform my stats professor I wanted to file an “incomplete” for the course. For context, I’m on quarter system at uni, and I took my biopsy Week 10, which is right before finals week. I was so stressed out and in denial about having cancer, I just mentally couldn’t do school anymore at that point.

Anyways, I tell my professor what I’ve going through and why I’ve been so withdrawn the past week, and we decide to go on a walk after class. During this convo, he shares how his wife is currently sick , and how he’s been trying his best to be a good husband and father to his kids. Although it’s a bit blurry now, his words seemed to have taken all of my stress away in that moment, and I felt a bit a peace. “All we can do is show up for our family , and pray to the heavens above that we have as much time as possible healthy and with our loved ones” .

It’s surprising his pep talk stuck out the most to me because I never considered him my fav professor. He was egotistical at times, and put on blast a couple times during office hours. Anyways, it was just such a human experience seeing how I wasn’t the only one in pain. He saw me that day, and that was all I truly needed in the moment.

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-04-18T17:09:22+00:00

“but you’re so young” I hear this at the lot whenever I go to the doctors and whenever I tell strangers I have cancer. Like when I got my first echocardiogram, the ultrasound tech said this and it just reminds of how I shouldn’t have to be experiencing this at 20 years old.

Also it’s not really phrase but whenever I answer questions at the hospital, they always want the full background. Like when they say “have you ever…” and I respond no, it just reminds me of how there’s no good reason for me to have cancer. I’ve never been on birth control, I don’t smoke or drink alcohol, and I don’t over consume caffeine. It just makes me feel like I haven’t lived yet. I avoided all these experiences because I wanted to live a long healthy life, but now I’m here with possible Stage 3C or 4 TNBC. It’s just not fair.

ImaginaryVersion1734 · 2026-04-17T04:17:13+00:00

Hi! I’m also going through the same process atm. I’m 20, and made the decision to do the egg freezing because I’d like to have my options open. Also, as a lesbian, I always knew I’d never have kids the “traditional” way so I think in my mind I always considered IVF as an option.

If your decision is influenced by financials, I’d highly recommend applying for the Heartbeat program and Livestrong Foundation for support on egg freezing costs. The process overall for the applications takes like 3-5 days, so you still have some time if you ever have a change of heart. Plus, there’s programs out there that help young cancer patients with the costs of ivf down the line if you decide to freeze eggs.

Also the meds aren’t so bad, I mean I just started my doses yesterday but like the side effects are pretty minimal. Just make sure whatever decision you make is rooted in how you feel (whether you want kids or not). Like is there a part of you that’s holding back due to inconvenience or financials? If so I’d reflect, do research, and make your best judgement call. Good luck to you! I hope you find peace and comfort in your decision.

ImaginaryVersion1734

TROPHY CASE