An inspirational story: Amy Harmon

Living in the moment — Amy's story

Amy Harmon had been vigilant about her regular screenings, including mammography, and when she found a lump in her breast, she reported it to her primary care provider right away.

A mammogram and follow-up MRI found it to be dense breast tissue, but even though she had no family history of cancer, Harmon had her doubts. And sure enough, at her next routine mammogram, she knew it was something more.

“I knew by the looks on their faces” after a biopsy, she said.

But it was October 2012, and Hurricane Sandy had swept in and delayed her receipt of the diagnosis, an agonizing wait. Finally, her primary care provider shared the results with her. “It was invasive ductal carcinoma,” she said.

After the diagnosis, everything went at top speed. She met with breast surgeon David Walker, MD, the next day, and a radical bilateral mastectomy quickly followed. The surgery brought some bad news – the cancer had spread to her lymph nodes, as well.

“It was stage 3C,” she said. There was no hesitation — after a short break during Thanksgiving, she started in on a chemotherapy regimen.

“Chemo was scary, but I knew the nurse who gave me my first one.  That’s the perk of working and living in a small town,” she said. “It was personal, and that was comforting.”

She is grateful for the support she received from her husband, her three children, her friends and even strangers.

“One of my friends set up a meal train, and I expected a few people I knew to sign up, but there were people I didn’t even know who were showing up at my door to drop off a meal,” she marveled.

Harmon says that anyone facing a challenging diagnosis and treatment should accept the help that people truly want to give. “And tell them what you need,” she said, “because sometimes you just want someone who will sit with you.”

Harmon also received radiation therapy; a burn from it complicated her reconstructive surgery, but she made it through. It hasn’t been without scares. “I had back pain in my spine, and they told me it was spinal metastasis,” she said. However, two bone biopsies said otherwise, to her relief. Harmon is still on oral chemotherapy. “It feels like a safety net, although every treatment has side effects,” she said.

Apart from a few breaks during her surgery and chemo, Harmon was able to work full-time as a social worker at TidalHealth, a role she still fulfills.

“Working was the best thing for me,” she said.

And as a hospital social worker, Harmon now has even more compassion for patients.

“I can relate to their uncertainty about tomorrow,” she said.

Most importantly, Harmon says people going through a similar experience should live in the moment.

“It can be disappointing if you are focusing on the calendar and your treatment schedule, and you have a setback or delay,” she said. “Taking things as they come is less overwhelming. I started out looking at a calendar, but taking a day-by-day approach ended up being what got me through it, and I still do it today.”