GULF BREEZE, Fla. — October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and it’s filled with stories of survival and hope. However, those stories often begin with fear and lives turned upside down.
Brittany Kirk is in her element — teaching at Oriole Beach Elementary, smiling and living with a confidence she never imagined.
Four and a half years ago, her world shifted on its axis.
“I was taking a shower on May 5, and I was just washing in the shower,” Kirk said. “I felt a bump that definitely was not there the day before.”
Within days, she had a double diagnosis — triple positive invasive ductal carcinoma and ductal carcinoma in situ.
With no family history or genetic indication, she was suddenly facing a highly aggressive form of breast cancer, already in stage 2.
“What in the world? I am 35 years old. I have a 3-year-old. I have a 6-year-old, and I was in a struggling marriage,” Kirk said. “I had no idea how I was going to do this.”
One day at a time, Brittany started fighting for her life.
She had a double mastectomy and 18 grueling rounds of chemo and additional medications.
Her mother and her two boys gave her strength, and her care team gave her hope.
When Brittany talks about Dr. Alex Brown at Ascension Sacred Heart Cancer Center, she puts it bluntly: “The man saved my life.”
For him, an essential part of cancer care is empathy for what the patient is going through.
“That drives you to learn; it drives you to understand everything you can about the disease that you’re trying to treat,” Dr. Brown said. “It will keep you motivated to be with that patient when things are tough.”
In the lobby of the cancer center, patients ring a bell when they finish their chemo treatments.
Brittany made it to the finish line.
“I rang that bell all 18 times, one for every treatment,” Kirk said. “It is the best feeling in the world to make it through that storm.”
Getting care immediately may have saved her life.
Dr. Brown says science and technology are increasing the chances for survival every day.
“I can tell folks, even if they have a stage of disease that isn’t considered curable, that if we can just keep it under control, that new developments will happen,” Dr. Brown said. “I can say that without any hesitation because it’s true, and that’s very inspiring.”
“There’s another side; there’s a light at the end of the tunnel,” Kirk said. “It’s a very dark tunnel. Keep going every day.”
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