The Durst Family

Hi I am a 47 year old mom of 3, wife of 11 years, daughter, sister and nurse.

I have 2 children, and 1 step child, 20, 17 and 11.  My daughter is 20, and the boys are 17 & 11.  The boys both play football and enjoy playing fortnite with their dad. 

I have been married for 11 years to my husband who is a disabled veteran who I have been taking care of the last 9 years.

I have been a nurse for 17 years and enjoy spending time with the elderly.  A lot of the time in nursing homes, the elderly don’t have a lot of visitors, so I like to make their time there important.  Make them feel like they are family and treat them like they are mine. 

My cancer story starts out on my 11th wedding anniversary when my armpit was hurting where my bra was resting.  As i undressed I raised my arm above my head and felt a large lump in my right armpit.  The next day (Monday) I called my primary care doctor and went to see her at 2:30pm, she ordered a mammogram and Ultrasound.  They were scheduled for the following day. As that appointment ended the radiologist let me know that I had cancer and further appointments were made for me.  Biopsies were on July 28th and met with surgical oncologist after that.  I have no history of cancer in my family and no other woman has breast cancer that I know of.  My husband’s mother also battled breast cancer when she was alive back in 2010.  After meeting with the surgical oncologist, I wasn’t happy with her as I asked about a double mastectomy, and she stated she would not touch my left breast.  I was confused and started searching for a new Doctor.  Fast forward a month and Oct 5th, my port a catheter was placed in my left chest and Chemotherapy starts Oct 11, the day after my 48th birthday.  

Being the main caretaker and money maker in the house has been a struggle since my diagnosis in July, any help that we receive will be appreciated and used in an appropriate manner.  This will allow us to catch up on monthly bills and not have to worry about where the money will come from.