My Story

Hi, my name is Becky. I live in North Carolina and until recently I traveled to Haiti roughly once a month to spend time with the people who’ve captured my heart. My greatest joys - and my greatest sorrows - have been a result of loving and knowing Haiti and her beautiful people.

In the spring of 2019, I was diagnosed with granulosa cell tumor (GCT) after having my right ovary removed. For two years prior to that, I had been seeing a physician who didn’t listen to my concerns, often dismissing me with “you’re getting older.”

I will never forget the moment a different physician said, “Something doesn’t seem right. Could we do an ultrasound before lunch?”

That same physician came to me before I walked out of the office using words like “oncology” and “surgery” and “CT scan.” That day which had started off so normally changed my world.

After my initial diagnosis I was told I really had nothing to worry about, that GCT rarely recurs. But that wasn’t true for me. I was diagnosed with a recurrence of GCT in February of 2023, less than 4 years after my initial diagnosis.

I had debulking surgery on May 2, 2023, an open abdominal surgery with two large incisions; however, pathology results showed the surgeon was not able to get clean margins from the samples taken. I had my post op appointment on June 5, and I started Letrozole June 30 (after a great deal of deliberation). You can read the latest about my journey with Letrozole here: 9 months with Letrozole — Fear is Not My Future

You can read more here: Stories of Cancer.

When I started this blog, I was beginning to navigate topics like hormone suppression, cold capping, chemo, PET scans, neuropathy, and more while trying to figure when I would be able to go back to Haiti which is in the midst of intense political unrest. For now, several of the above topics are on hold, though I may need to revisit them in the future.

Now, this blog serves as a place to update friends and family, while hoping to encourage others wherever they are on their journey.

I’ve been active and a healthy eater for years, but this latest twist of life has me diving even more deeply into diet and exercise. I believe that many of my symptoms from Letrozole are best managed by a whole foods diet and daily exercise. On the mornings when I am home, you can find me at Wrightsville Beach before sunrise, running, walking, and sometimes searching for treasures like starfish and conch shells.

After years of being encouraged by a number of people to “write a book,” it seems like a blog is a great place to start telling stories, not just of the journey ahead, but of the paths I have already walked - most specifically the paths in Haiti.

I don’t know what the days ahead will bring, but I’m determined to live them with grace & enthusiasm.

I hope you’ll join me on the journey.