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Mostly Cloudy Mercy Hospital honors breast cancer survivor
Yolanda Sanchez beat cancer by being proactive
Six months ago, Yolanda Sanchez had a routine breast exam at Mercy Hospital, in Rockville Centre, and got life-changing news when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. After a whirlwind half-year, she was honored at the hospital on Oct. 18 for being proactive about her disease, as physicians say women across the country should be.
“I never thought it would be me,” the 43-year-old Sanchez, a radiology technician in Island Park, said at the ceremony in Mercy’s Garden of Caring. “I’m young, a new mom, had zero symptoms and no family history. But it was me, and I’m here to share that it could be you, too. Please schedule your mammograms. It can save your life. It saved mine.”
Dr. Alice Kim, the hospital’s director of imaging, encouraged others to be proactive and get tested even if they do not feel any lumps in their breasts. Sanchez had no such warning sign, and caught the cancer early because she had a routine check.
Sanchez was brought to tears just thinking about celebrating her 44th birthday next month, one day before her twin sons, Lucas and Liam, will turn 2. “This birthday is definitely going to be different,” Sanchez said. “I’m aware that my outcome could have been different had I not made that appointment, so I’m going to appreciate all the moments, no matter how small they are, and just enjoy the things I love.”
Jeannie Colamussi was the nurse navigator who aided Sanchez through the diagnosis and treatment processes. “It’s really not hard when you get a day like today,” Colamussi said. “I get more from my patients than they get from me. That’s what gives us all the strength to carry on and do this every day, is because of patients like Yolanda.”
Yolanda’s father, Eddie Sanchez, was with her for every chemotherapy treatment. Her husband, Alan, who attended the ceremony, couldn’t hide his glee that his wife was being recognized.
Sanchez opted to have a total mastectomy, after hereditary genetic testing at Mercy determined that she was positive for a moderate risk of the breast cancer gene, which increases her overall lifetime risk of contracting cancer. She had the procedure on Monday.
Dr. Sophia Fu, the hospital’s director of breast surgery, performed the mastectomy, and will also conduct Sanchez’s reconstructive surgery.
“This will help give her a chance to feel normal again,” Fu said, “and not be reminded every day, physically, that she had cancer as she journeys into being a breast cancer survivor.”
