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After sister dies of breast cancer in 2 months, woman catches disease early

After having what Holly Daugherty thought was a preventative mastectomy, she learned she had breast cancer.
/ Source: TODAY

After her sister was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2020, Holly Daugherty was tested for BRCA mutations. She had one and underwent a prophylactic mastectomy and hysterectomy to reduce her chances of developing cancer. When she had her mastectomy, her doctor didn’t notice anything suspicious. That’s why she was surprised when pathology found breast cancer.

“They caught it so early. … We didn’t even see it on an MRI,” Daugherty, 43 of Evansville, Indiana, told TODAY. “They caught it before the whole disease process of the rough side of cancer started. So I did not have to undergo any chemotherapy, any radiation.”

Holly Daugherty's experience with breast cancer looked so different than many other's experiences. She feels grateful that it was caught so early that she did not have to go through grueling treatments.
Holly Daugherty's experience with breast cancer looked so different than many other's experiences. She feels grateful that it was caught so early that she did not have to go through grueling treatments. Courtesy Holly Daugherty

While she feels grateful that her breast cancer journey wasn’t as arduous, she also carries some guilt.

“Because I didn’t have to lose my hair and have the outward display of fighting cancer, it was almost a little bit embarrassing to say, ‘Hey, I have cancer,’” she said. “I’m careful when I’m talking to other cancer patients because I know I did not pay quite the price that they did. It is not lost on me what has been given to me.”

A sister’s cancer diagnosis leads to screening

In 2020, Daugherty’s sister learned she had breast cancer and doctors advised the family to undergo screening to see if they carry a BRCA mutation.

“My sister was diagnosed at 43 and died when she was 43. It metastasized so quickly. From the time that we got a diagnosis, they said that she would probably have less than a year, maybe 10 months,” Daugherty recalled. “She was gone in two months. So we didn’t have much time.”

Soon after Daugherty learned she had the mutation, her sister died in September 2020.

“Through genetic testing they gave us our risks and benefits,” she explained. “I proceeded with the option to do a hysterectomy, oophorectomy to take my ovaries out, and then a total mastectomy.”

When Holly Daugherty's sister was diagnosed with cancer everyone underwent screening to learn if they carried the BRCA mutation. Daugherty learned that she did and scheduled preventative procedures to remove her breasts and ovaries.
When Holly Daugherty's sister was diagnosed with cancer everyone underwent screening to learn if they carried the BRCA mutation. Daugherty learned that she did and scheduled preventative procedures to remove her breasts and ovaries. Courtesy Holly Daughterty

In November she had a breast MRI, the hysterectomy in December and the mastectomy in January 2021. The MRI did not show any signs of cancer and her surgeon from Indiana University Health said after the January procedure that everything looked normal. They sent tissue to pathology as a standard practice but no one expected the pathologists to spot anything unusual.

“From the time I got the MRI in November to January I grew cancer. That’s how quickly it grew. They said it was invasive and starting to spread,” Daugherty said. “We caught it so early, thank God that it had not spread into my lymph nodes yet. So needless to say only because of cancer research am I even alive right now.”

Further testing revealed that the type of cancer she had was positive for an estrogen receptor so she started taking a hormone suppressor to prevent any “microscopic spread of the disease.”

“We’re starving it with the estrogen suppression,” she said.

Catching it so early meant she didn’t need any chemotherapy or radiation.

“My oncologist (said) you don’t need any chemo,” Daugherty said. “I would say it’s the exception to the rule. If you have breast cancer most people have chemo of some kind or you have to have radiation.”

Because her treatment was so limited, Daugherty never lost her hair. People pause when they see someone with long hair saying they have cancer.

“I’m sure it went through people’s minds,” she said. “It’s a striking marker. If you see someone walking down the street who has a head with no hair on it, cancer is your first assumption.”

Not going through chemotherapy or radiation meant that Holly Daugherty never lost her hair or feel sick when she had breast cancer.
Not going through chemotherapy or radiation meant that Holly Daugherty never lost her hair or feel sick when she had breast cancer. Courtesy Holly Daugherty

And, she never felt nauseated or weak because of treatment. But that gives her a unique type of survivor's guilt.

“I’m still healthy. I don’t have a brittle body,” she said. “It was strange that I got to wear the badge of cancer remission when I didn’t have to walk the road of so many others who had a harder fight than me.”

Screening and family history

Understanding her risk of breast cancer helped Daugherty have an easier cancer experience. That’s why she hopes her story encourages others to undergo regular tests, such as mammograms, which can detect breast cancer earlier. Knowing your family history can also play a role in helping people find and prevent breast cancer.

“Screening is wonderful and that is phase one for the general population,” she said. “Genetic counseling takes it to a whole new level because what screening did not, what radiology did not pick up, the genetic counseling gave me a heads up to start making decisions for surgical interventions.”

Holly Daugherty hopes her story encourages other people to undergo regular cancer screenings and understand their family history.
Holly Daugherty hopes her story encourages other people to undergo regular cancer screenings and understand their family history.Courtesy Holly Daugherty

While having her cancer caught and treated so easily means she is in a “wonderful place” now, it feels bittersweet.

“My sister basically saved my life. She gave up her life for the rest of us,” she said. “This door opened to have all of us tested.”