Lawrence nurse credits self-breast exams for early cancer detection
4:32 p.m. Friday, March 7, 2008
She should be planning her wedding. Instead, a 24-year-old Lawrence nurse is undergoing chemotherapy.
”In September, I noticed a lump on my left breast,” Leslie Wurdeman, 24, said. “The biopsy came out positive for cancer. November 5 was the date I was diagnosed.”
Doctors diagnosed her with infiltrating ductal carcinoma or stage one breast cancer. They had caught it extremely early, in part, because Wurdeman believes in the importance of self breast exams.
“Doing self breast exams was just a thing I've always done. A paternal grandmother passed away from breast cancer. So, monthly, generally I would do them. And, the lump was just all of a sudden there,” Wurdeman said.
She chose surgery to remove the 1.2 centimeter tumor. Doctors were not sure whether she needed to undergo chemotherapy, but Wurdeman wanted to make sure she wins the battle.
“I really didn't give them a choice. We're doing it because if I have any minute cells anywhere, they need to be taken out,” Wurdeman said.
So, every other week for about three hours, you can find her in the Lawrence Memorial Hospital oncology department. Her mother and fiancé are right by her side.
The bride-to-be may have lost her hair, but she hasn't lost her spirit.
“I think it has kind of given me a second chance to find myself, going through the process. It is not about my hair, it's about what's inside that counts,” Wurdeman said.
She hopes to finish her chemotherapy treatments April 3. She will then undergo six weeks of radiation. Wurdeman says the aggressive approach was the only option for her.
“I don't have a choice. I'm too young for this. I don't have a choice."
She says none of it will stop her from walking down the aisle on April 25, 2009.
“I have a wedding to plan,” Wurdeman said.
To learn more about the importance of self breast exams click here for our Friend2Friend link.
Coming soon, local, young television talent will shine on 49 News Kidcasts. Check back to see local kids, 4th through 8th grade, to give the weather on TV.
Post a comment
(Requires free registration.)