Finding Strength in the Fight: A Patient’s Journey Through Cancer and Hope

Prior to her own diagnosis, Angela George was no stranger to cancer. Her two grandfathers had it – one had bone cancer, and one had pancreatic cancer. Her grandmother and mother both survived breast cancer, and her father had just recently been diagnosed with colon cancer. So, when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2021 at the age of 42, she had an idea of what she was up against.

In July of 2020, shortly after her father’s colon cancer diagnosis, Angela went with a gut feeling and contacted her Cleveland Clinic in Florida family physician, Hermann Stubbe, MD. Because of her family history, Dr. Stubbe recommended Angela undergo a colonoscopy and genetic testing. The genetic testing revealed Angela had a 31 percent chance of developing breast cancer in her lifetime.

After additional testing with a women’s health specialist, which included more in-depth personal details about her health history, Angela’s calculated lifetime risk for breast cancer jumped to 38 percent.

“Thirty-eight percent is pretty high,” Angela says. “That’s a 50-50 chance in my mind.”

She had had a regular mammogram in June 2020, which did not show any abnormal results. However, because of her higher risk for breast cancer, Angela needed to have alternating MRIs and mammograms every six months. So, on Christmas Eve of 2020, Angela underwent her first MRI. A few days later she was notified that abnormalities were detected in both breasts. She had biopsies done on Jan. 4, 2021, and on January 7 she received a call from her doctor: she had stage 1 cancer in her left breast.

“I was overwhelmed,” she says.

A native of Canada, she had just moved to Coral Springs with her husband, Evan, and 10-year-old son, Jaxson, about a year earlier. Her husband’s family lived nearby but her family lived in Canada and Nevada. Angela was grateful to live near Cleveland Clinic Weston Hospital and knew without a doubt that that was where she would have her cancer treatment.

“I truly think things happen for a reason and I was meant to be here when going through this,” she says.

Her cancer type was aggressive, and things moved quickly after her diagnosis. Within three weeks she underwent a bilateral (double) mastectomy, performed by Weston Hospital breast surgeon Cassann Blake, MD. About a month later she started chemotherapy – a total of six rounds over a span of about five months, and then a year of Herceptin infusions followed by an oophorectomy performed by Weston Hospital gynecologic oncologist Adria Suarez Mora, MD.

Angela is now approaching the five-year anniversary of her cancer diagnosis. With her active treatment behind her, she is getting back to normal life as a busy working mother and wife. She is on a daily medication to reduce estrogen and sees her oncologist, Zeina Nahleh, MD, every six months.

It was a tough couple of years, but Angela has a positive outlook and was quick to point out the bright spots during her illness. For example, in February of 2022, when she had completed all of her infusions and her port was removed, she and her family went on a cruise in the Caribbean with friends to celebrate.

And, she says that in some ways she actually enjoyed her chemotherapy appointments because she met one of her best friends there – another woman who had a similar diagnosis and started treatment the same day.

“We had each other to talk about what we were going through,” Angela says.

Before she lost her hair to chemotherapy, Angela’s mother and two friends went to her house to shave her head, making the best of it by creating a fun, party atmosphere.

“I had to put positive things on the negatives to be able to make it through it with a smile on my face,” Angela says. “Positivity is what shapes your recovery and shapes how you overcome it.”

She also found a lot of support in the complementary therapeutic resources offered at Weston Hospital. Art therapy, facials, massages and meditation were all helpful in getting her through her treatment both physically and mentally.

“I utilized art therapy every time I was there for infusions,” she says. “It would let me express how I was feeling without saying any words. It was extremely helpful.”

Angela is glad she chose Cleveland Clinic in Florida for her care. She describes her whole care team as “compassionate, knowledgeable and kind.”

“Cancer is terrifying,” she says. “But when you know your healthcare team truly has your back. It changes everything.”

The end of her treatment was bittersweet, she says, because she was sad that she wouldn’t be seeing all of the caregivers with whom she had formed special relationships.

Angela wants to tell people to put their health first by being proactive about it, which includes getting the recommended screenings even if they may be uncomfortable.

“A mammogram is nothing compared to what you could have to go through,” she says. “You can overcome anything.”