Breast cancer runs in the family on my dads side. Grandma died from it, great aunts had it, one of my dads sisters had it and the other sister optEd for prophylactic bilateral mastectomy. We did genetic testing and do not have the brca gene. Mine was hormone receptor positive (HER2). Breast cancer can not grow with out breast tissue which is why I made that choice. I knew I couldn’t live being always worried about it happening again.

Lauren, thank you for sharing your story with me. I know you had to be so scared especially since your daughter was so young. I’m so happy to hear you are a breast cancer survivor. Did you have genetic testing? Are you more susceptible to get breast cancer if you don’t have a bilateral mastectomy?