Be Proactive

“After my mother passed away from breast cancer that metastasized to her lungs, I started getting yearly mammograms,” says Donisha Faul, who began getting mammograms at 32 years old. “In January, I was doing a self-test and felt a lump, so I immediately went to my obstetrician, who referred me to UCLA Health for a biopsy. In February, it was confirmed: I had triple negative breast cancer. I met my cancer team on Valentine’s Day, of all days. Because I had a rare form, we did neoadjuvant therapy, where we do the chemotherapy first, as opposed to removing the tumor first. I had surgery in August with Dr. Amy Kusske and the tumor shrunk from 37 millimeters down to 7 millimeters. I’m in the process of 4 weeks of radiation. When I talk to people, I tell them to get checked out. With any type of cancer, you should be proactive in your health.”