Cancer foundation assists younger women
Jennifer Kehm, left, and Roberta Szpara help lend support and inspiration to others who have had breast cancer.
Jenny Wood of Mt. Lebanon shares her story about how periodic screenings for breast cancer helped save her life.
Jennifer Kehm greets Dr. Adam Brufsky during a kickoff event for National Breast Cancer Awareness Month held Oct. 1 at Fleet Feet in Bethel Park.
McMURRAY – With one young child and hopes of more, Roberta Szpara was in no way prepared for the news she received at age 31.
“I don’t have any history of breast cancer in my family,” the Baldwin resident said. But when she detected a lump, she decided she’d better have it checked.
“Within two weeks, I was diagnosed with Stage 2 invasive ductal carcinoma,” she recalled. “It had already moved to my lymph nodes at that point, so I started chemo immediately.”
The news got worse.
“My first visit with my oncologist, he told me to come to terms with the fact that I would not have any more kids,” Szpara said. “Chemo would destroy my ovaries.”
Following chemotherapy and surgery, she was on the anti-estrogen drug Tamoxifen for two years before she asked for a break from it and went to see a fertility doctor.
“She said, ‘You know, we can try. This probably won’t work for you. Your ovarian function is so low,'” Szpara said.
“So I tried injections to stimulate follicles. I tried for five days” – she tends to break into a smile at this point – “and I found out I was pregnant with twins.”
Her doctor was happy, too. “She hugged me after that and said, ‘This is why we treat patients, not numbers.”
As for today: “My twins are now almost 3. And I have been cancer-free for seven years this Halloween.”
Hers is one of the many inspirational stories that Jennifer Kehm has heard through her work with the Young Women’s Breast Cancer Awareness Foundation, which the Peters Township woman co-founded 10 years ago.
“I think the power of Roberta’s story really lies in the fact that she took control and she explored options,” Kehm said. “She was able to find them, and they turned into the two biggest blessings of her life.”
Jenny Wood, of Mt. Lebanon, who is in her 30s, also is involved with the foundation. Unlike Szpara, breast cancer is in her family: Her mother was diagnosed at 26 and died at 30.
“I always knew I was at high risk,” Wood said, and so she had regular screenings. In 2013, a biopsy revealed she had the disease.
“I think it saved my life because I immediately went right to surgery, and through chemo and through radiation,” she explained. “I’m not sure I would be here today if it wasn’t for acting so quickly and really kind of taking charge of something that could be really scary.”
Kehm also was in her 30s when she learned she had breast cancer.
“When you’re diagnosed, no matter what age, it’s a challenge,” she said. “It’s frightening; it’s isolating; it’s scary. But when you are 40 or under, you do have different situations. You have younger children. You might be breastfeeding. You might be considering expanding your family.”
After her diagnosis, Kehm sought others who faced similar situations.
“Once I found other people in the community, we were able to support each other,” she said. “It was a great resource to me, so I just wanted to continue that, to help women who were newly diagnosed, so that they wouldn’t have the isolation and the fear, and they’d be able to learn from each other.”
The foundation’s activities include support groups and educational seminars, such as one last week featuring a talk by Dr. Adam Brufsky, a UMPC oncologist and Upper St. Clair resident. The event was held on the first day of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month at Fleet Feet in Bethel Park.
“We’re just delighted to invite people into our store and support such a great organization,” general manager Deb Doyle of Mt. Lebanon said. “We have several women in our run groups who, unfortunately, have had breast cancer, and have discovered running as a great outlet for stress relief and getting to the point of leading a fit and healthy lifestyle.”
While the Young Women’s Breast Cancer Awareness Foundation was formed with a certain age range in mind, Kehm stressed that it is open to anyone who seeks support and up-to-date information.
“The bottom line is, you are in control of your own health,” she said. “You need to go find what you’re looking for and what you feel is possible.”
For more information, visit www.youngwomensbreastcancerfoundation.com