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Tag: bilateral mastectomy

  • Amber Marchese: ‘Real Housewives of New Jersey’ Star Confirms Cancer is Back

    Amber Marchese, star of The Real Housewives of New Jersey, confirmed recently that her cancer has returned. She learned the devastating news back in April.

    “I was just sick to my stomach,” she said in an interview with People magazine.

    “I can’t even begin to describe the feeling you get when someone says you have cancer,” she adds. “Then to get it again after you thought you fought it and thought it was behind you ….”

    Amber Marchese feared at first that her life was over.

    “I was thinking, ‘This is definitely it. I’m going to die,’” she said.

    First diagnosed with breast cancer back in 2009, Amber Marchese underwent a bilateral mastectomy even though her left breast was cancer-free–just to be on the safe side. She had a cancer scare on the last season of the RHONJ when blood tests for a cancer screening were at first inconclusive. In the end, she learned that she was, indeed, still cancer-free. Sadly, that has now changed.

    The new tumor, she says, “is right in the middle of where the other two were. It’s the same type of tumor.”

    Amber Marchese believed chemotherapy would rid her of cancer forever.

    “I thought, you remove it, you go through the harsh treatments, and you move on. So I was shocked. Everyone is shocked,” she said.

    Marchese says her doctor isn’t certain yet if the tumor is a new one or if not enough tissue was removed during the mastectomy.

    “You’re never going to remove 100 percent of the breast tissue with a mastectomy. So you just pray to God that you remove enough,” she said.

    “You have a double mastectomy and chemotherapy to stack all the odds in your favor so that there is no recurrence. The percentage of it recurring is very small, less than 5 percent. I just fell into that category. I wasn’t so lucky.”

    It was back on April 3rd when Amber Marchese was watching a movie with her husband, Jim Marchese, that she discovered the new lump.

    “I have no idea what made me do this, but I reached my arms over my head and touched my right breast and felt it. It was hard. It was pea-sized. And I just knew …. My heart just sank,” she said.

    “I said, ‘Jim, I just found another lump.’ It was right by the site of the other tumors. I just knew in my heart that this was serious, and Jim did too.”

    Amber Marchese will soon have more surgery to remove the remaining breast tissue with clean margins. She will then undergo radiation treatments five days a week for five weeks. She will be having an MRI of both her chest and her brain as well, to make sure the cancer hasn’t spread.

    The Real Housewives of New Jersey star is a strong believer in the power of prayer.

    “By God’s good grace, I found the lump on Good Friday,” she says. “I have spent a lot of time in prayer. It’s the only thing that is giving me a sense of hope that no matter what, everything is going to be okay. It takes away my fear and doubt.

    “Then you kind of just take a deep breath and you just talk. Jim and I talked this through every which way, probably 24/7. And we pray. We pray together. We pray by ourselves,” she adds.

    Surely Amber Marchese’s friends and fans are praying for her as well. Hopefully with medical intervention and all these prayers, she will once again be cancer free.

  • Rita Wilson: Tom Hanks’ Wife Has Breast Cancer, Undergoes Bilateral Mastectomy

    Rita Wilson, the wife of actor Tom Hanks, underwent a bilateral mastectomy–as well as reconstructive surgery–last week, following a diagnosis of breast cancer.

    According to a report from People magazine, the actress feels ‘blessed.’

    “I have taken a leave from the play Fish in the Dark to deal with a personal health issue. Last week, with my husband by my side, and with the love and support of family and friends, I underwent a bilateral mastectomy and reconstruction for breast cancer after a diagnosis of invasive lobular carcinoma. I am recovering and most importantly, expected to make a full recovery. Why? Because I caught this early, have excellent doctors and because I got a second opinion,” Wilson said.

    “I have had an underlying condition of LCIS, (lobular carcinoma in situ) which has been vigilantly monitored through yearly mammograms and breast MRIs. Recently, after two surgical breast biopsies, PLCIS (pleomorphic carcinoma in situ) was discovered. I mention this because there is much unknown about PLCIS and it is often found alongside DCIS (ductal carcinoma in situ). I was relieved when the pathology showed no cancer,” she added.

    “However, a friend who had had breast cancer suggested I get a second opinion on my pathology and my gut told me that was the thing to do. A different pathologist found invasive lobular carcinoma. His diagnosis of cancer was confirmed by, yet, another pathologist. I share this to educate others that a second opinion is critical to your health. You have nothing to lose if both opinions match up for the good, and everything to gain if something that was missed is found, which does happen. Early diagnosis is key,” Rita Wilson shared.

    “I feel blessed to have a loving, supportive husband, family, friends and doctors and that I am the beneficiary of advances in the field of breast cancer and reconstruction. I am getting better every day and look forward to renewed health,” she said.

    “I hope this will encourage others to get a second opinion and to trust their instincts if something doesn’t ‘feel’ right,” the actress urged.

    Tom Hanks has yet to comment publicly on wife Rita Wilson and her recent breast cancer diagnosis and subsequent surgery. It won’t be surprising to see him issue a statement in the near future.

    Kudos to Rita Wilson for speaking out about her very personal ordeal, in hopes that it will help other women be more mindful about their own bodies and breast health.

    Surely people from all around the world are keeping Rita Wilson, Tom Hanks, and their family in their prayers as they all recover from this harrowing ordeal.