A DISCUSSION WITH KATIE REIFENBERG PINSON

Katie Reifenberg Pinson was diagnosed with Invasive Ductal Carcinoma in 2020. She was 38 and surprised, to say the least, as there was no history of breast cancer in her family. Add a raging pandemic to the mix, and she was faced with isolation during treatment instead of an inundation of hands-on help. Despite months of chemo and surgeries and ongoing hormone suppressants, today, Katie has weathered the storm and even found rays of hope and happiness that push the clouds of fear away, thanks to friends near and far and her art.

Tell us a little bit about your cancer diagnosis and treatment. In the beginning of 2020, at the age of 38, I developed a pneumonia-like cough. I tested negative for everything and had perfect bloodwork. In the late spring, I started having severe rib pain in my underarm location. While I was pressing around on my ribs trying to locate the source of pain, I noticed an enlarged lymph node under my arm. I assumed it was from whatever respiratory virus had been plaguing me for such a long time.

Because of the pandemic, it was difficult to get an appointment with anyone quickly, so I called my OBGYN. His nurse called me back and asked several questions. She said he wanted me to have a diagnostic mammogram since I had never had one. I went to the Montgomery Breast Center for my mammogram. Several spots showed up on an ultrasound (that I had right after the mammogram), and they were biopsied the next week.

On a Monday morning, right as I was getting ready for work, the radiologist called me to let me know that the biopsies showed malignancy in both the tumor and the lymph node. I was so confused and actually asked her if she was telling me that I had breast cancer. She said yes, and that it had spread into an axillary node so I would most definitely have chemotherapy and surgery at the very least. An oncologist at the Montgomery Cancer Center formally diagnosed me with Invasive Ductal Carcinoma. I was Stage IIIB- Her2-. Er+. PR+ and negative for genetics. I had two tumors and malignant lymph nodes throughout my breast, underarm and chest muscle. My care plan included several months of chemotherapy, a lumpectomy, a re-excision lumpectomy, eight weeks of daily radiation, an oophorectomy and hormone suppressant therapy.