Brittany Hodge

By Previve on December 11, 2010 | Category: Previvor Stories | 2 Comments

My name is Brittany, and I’m a 23-year-old previvor from Knoxville, Tennessee. I would like to share my story, but I feel like it’s necessary to begin with sharing my mom’s. In 2007, at the age of 44, my mom was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of breast cancer known as “triple negative” breast cancer. This was the last thing that she or I expected to hear, because no one in our family had ever been diagnosed with breast cancer.

Brittany Hodge

I am glad to say that my mom is happy and healthy today after treatment, but she was tested for the BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations at her doctor’s request and learned she was BRCA2 positive. I was tested as well, and I discovered I also carried the BRCA2 gene mutation. Since breast cancer did not run in our family, I believe her case is proof-positive that family history has to start somewhere and that everyone should be tested.

Because of my BRCA2 mutation, I have elected to have a preventive mastectomy with immediate implant reconstruction in February 2011, at New Orleans’s Center for Restorative Breast Surgery. This is the same hospital where my mom continued her reconstruction after her initial left-side mastectomy. She has since had a preventive mastectomy and reconstruction on her right breast to reduce the chance of her cancer returning.

I know having this surgery is a huge step, and some people may see it as drastic and unnecessary. I think it will save my life, so I’m constantly defending my decision and situation. Mammography did not catch my mom’s breast cancer, which is a scary thought because routine surveillance is the main recommendation to those of us with the defective gene. Also, since my mom’s breast cancer was triple negative (not related to hormone receptors), it is also likely that I could get the same aggressive form of breast cancer. Therefore, prevention drugs involving those hormone receptors are of no use to me either.

Sharing her story and mine is very important to me, because I have the knowledge that my mom did not have before her cancer diagnosis. I’ve seen the toll that the treatment has taken on her young body, so I would like to avoid that at all costs. I’m so thankful to have the options that she didn’t have, so I can strike cancer before it can strike me.

2 Responses to “Brittany Hodge”

1. Mary selden

   December 13, 2010 at 1:58 pm

   Congratulations. You have made a wonderful decision. You have chosen to meet this threat head on. For those of us who have already done these surgeries, we applaud your braveness. Fight the good fight and don’t let people tell you are wrong, This is the best decision you could ever make, a choice to live !!!

   Reply
2. Marissa Levesque

   January 3, 2011 at 4:13 pm

   Never worry about what others think is drastic or un-needed. Tell them to live with saying that if you didnt do what you felt you should and did get diagnosed. That is something that just truly angers me. I was 23 when I found out I was BRCA1+, with a severe family history. I had preventative surgery Sept. 09. When I got my test results, I walked next door to my mothers surgeon. He would not listen to me. There was no discussion, I wanted them off. I had watched cancer in action too many times and I wanted NO part of it. I already had a 5 year old daughter at that point, who I did not breast feed. This surgeon went on and on about how I would want to breast feed and how I am not married. WHAT DOES THAT HAVE TO DO WITH IT?! He implied that me not being married would be a problem. Well if a man doesnt love me after having this surgery to save mmy life, then who needs him! Actually, about 2 months after that meeting, I did get into a relationship. And I did break the news. And he told me he loved me after I told him, and has been by my side through every step ever since. Maybe I would want to breast feed some day if I had the option..but weigh out the options here…breast feed….or be alive to watch my child grow>>!!!! Bottom line is you do what you feel is best for you. If you feel it is best, and you sleep better at night, then it was the right decision and not drastic in any way. I highly promote genetic testing and actually have started a non profit organization to help fund genetic testing for high risk women who do not have health insurance or financial means to pay out of pocket. Pink-Surance is oficially launching early 2011. I plan to fund testing and empower women, especially young women, to feel beautiful with their decision and to take charge of their health and their lives. We are working on the website, but if you would like, we have a cause, group and community page on Facebook.

   Reply