Triple Negative Breast Cancer, "I Won't Back Down!": A Start Of A Friendship, Quickly Taken By Triple Negative Breast Cancer... Megan Castillo

What is TNBC

WHAT IS TRIPLE NEGATIVE BREAST CANCER?

Just in recent years, Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC) has sparked interest in the news where instead of calling the tumor as ER-negative, PR-negative, and HER2-negative; researchers began using the shorthand term, "Triple Negative," dubbed the "new type" of breast cancer. Being Triple Negative, you don't have a targeted therapy and your only treatment option is chemotherapy.

Triple Negative Breast Cancer is seen in about 15% of all breast cancers. TNBC is a very aggressive cancer that tends to strike younger women, pre-menopause, especially among African-American women and women who have BRCA1 mutations. The tumor tends to be fast growing and is less likely to show up on an annual mammogram. TNBC is more likely to metastasis early on; has a high rate of recurrence in the first 2-3 years from diagnosis and has a poorer prognosis than other types of breast cancer due to lack of specific, targeted treatment for TNBC.

Friday, July 6, 2012

A Start Of A Friendship, Quickly Taken By Triple Negative Breast Cancer... Megan Castillo

Megan was diagnosed in June 2011 with Stage 3 Triple Negative Breast Cancer with lots of positive nodes. Megan had just finished treatments in March 2012 and followed up with a pet scan. Scan showed mets to sternum nodes. Now Stage 4 as of April 2012 and married almost 3 years, Megan's world was shattered as her dream of being a mother would not be, She was "pissed off" were her exact words.
Mets continued to brain and had radiation on it. Megan also started a clinical trial, Xeloda but the cancer continued to metastasis to her shoulder and arm, then quickly to her lungs and liver. Megan was so excited to finally take her dream honeymoon to Bahamas on June 23rd... that never happened; sadly, Megan passed on June 30, 2012 at the age of 35.
Good bye my dear friend, you found peace.

(link to obituary)
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/telegram/obituary.aspx?n=megan-castillo&pid=158348593#.T_dgPUwrKKE.facebook