Hopeful for the future

At 78 years old, Charlotte Carney, of Nanticoke, thought she had escaped breast cancer.

That belief was shattered, however, this past January when a routine mammogram revealed stage 1 invasive ductile carcinoma in her left breast.

“Cancer has no age limit, unfortunately,” Carny said during a recent interview with the Times Leader at Geisinger’s Henry Cancer Center in Wilkes-Barre.

It was a triumphant day for the now 79-year-old retired nurse — she was officially six months cancer-free.

Although she had hoped the disease would pass her by completely, Carny knew her risk for developing breast cancer was high, given her family history.

In addition to her late mother undergoing a mastectomy when she was 65, two of Carney’s three sisters were also diagnosed with breast cancer at one point in their lives. One sister had a lumpectomy when she was 47 and 16 years later, at the age of 69, the cancer returned in her other breast and she underwent a double mastectomy. Nearly two decades ago, at 58, Carney’s other sister had a lumpectomy.

From talking with her sisters, Carney learned that three of her aunts also had breast cancer, and several years ago, her niece, Jill, was diagnosed with the disease as well.

After her diagnosis, Carney said her medical team assembled immediately. According to Geisinger Breast Surgery Nurse Coordinator Rebecca Vanderveken, who also took part in the interview, breast cancer is treated at Geisinger by a team that consists of a surgeon, who in this case was Doctor Rebecca Jordan; a general surgeon specializing in breast surgery; two medical oncologists; and oncology social workers.

The team discusses a treatment plan together, and from there, the patient meets with each provider individually.

“It’s a long visit, but you leave there knowing the whole plan start to finish, you have a face to a name and you don’t leave there with more questions than answers,” Vanderveken said.

Before her surgery, Carney had an MRI, which revealed that the cancer had spread to a second site in her breast. The test also showed the cancer was in her milk ducts.

“I think the next meeting was with everyone to discuss what we were going to do,” Carney remembered. “I knew the left breast had to come off. They said I could go home and think about it, but I said no. I also said to take the right breast because of my history.”

Carney underwent surgery on April 9 at Geisinger South and her whole family was by her side.

“My three adult sons were there, my three daughters-in-law were there, and two of my grandchildren, who took off part of the day to be with grandma when she was going to have surgery,” she said.

When the pathology on her breasts came back, it became apparent that Carney made the right call in getting her right breast removed along with the left, as they found cancer there as well.

Because the cancer was caught early, Carney did not need to undergo radiation or chemotherapy, and she opted out of having reconstructive surgery.

“Today, I’m doing fine. I go to the Cancer Wellness Center [in Forty Fort], which is part of Candy’s Place. I feel that’s my oasis,” Carney said.

In sharing her story during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Carney hopes that she can encourage women to get their yearly mammograms.

“I often talk to my friends at the Rose Tucker Senior Center in Nanticoke where I live and I say, ‘Girls do you get your mammograms?’ and they say, ‘No, I stopped that years ago,’” Carney said.

But cancer doesn’t discriminate, even if you don’t have any history of it in your family. Vanderveken pointed out that statistically, only 10-15% of cancers are associated with genetics.

“Which blows my mind, honestly, because then we see cases like this, and we see a lot of cases like this,” she explained. “But the biggest risk for breast cancer is being a woman and getting older.”

Carney also pointed out that men should be vigilant about their health as well, and regularly reminds her sons to check their bodies for anything abnormal.

According to the American Cancer Society, male breast cancer accounts for less than one percent of all breast cancer diagnoses and about one in 726 men will develop breast cancer in their lifetime.

However, it’s that rarity that makes male breast cancer much more challenging to treat, the Breast Cancer Research Society said.

According to the organization, a 2023 study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, found that, unlike breast cancer in women, survival rates for male breast cancer have not significantly improved in the last 30 years.

Half a year out from her surgery, Carney is adjusting to her new normal. The fear of her cancer returning in some way is something she deals with daily.

“Even though we know we’re cured, you never know if that one cell got away,” Carney explained. “That’s always in the back of our heads.”

Carney, who is originally from New Jersey, moved to Nanticoke eight years ago from Coopersburg. She and her late husband, who passed away 22 years ago, raised their three children on a farm in Schuylkill County.

After her husband died, she became a licensed practical nurse at 45 years old. Before going to school, she also spent time at St. Joseph’s Center as a certified nursing assistant.

Given her long career in the medical field, Carney found comfort in researching her condition and regularly borrows books on cancer research from the library. On a recent trip to Barnes and Noble, Carney bought “Breast Cancer Survivor’s Manual” by Dr. John Link, which became a source of hope and inspiration for her.

“It said, ‘Breast cancer is a journey, not a destination,’” she recalled.

For Carney, that journey has had many ups and downs, and she likened her recovery experience to going through the stages of grief, especially when it came to losing her breasts.

“But doing that saved my life,” Carney said. “So, I’m picking up the pieces. And that’s when you need the most help.”

To build back her confidence, Carney’s team introduced her to That Special Woman at the Gateway Shopping Center in Kingston. The business specializes in making prosthetics and bras for women who have undergone mastectomies.

“I really had no experience with prosthetics, but that’s what I have now. I look normal; you’d never know I had this done,” Carney said. “I feel confident. When I look in the mirror, I think, ‘Wow, I look like me again.’”

Additionally, she continues to work with her team on her mental health and attends a cancer support group at the Cancer Wellness Center.

She’s also tried various physical therapies to help her relax and connect to her body again, including flexology, ringing bowl therapy and Reiki healing.

Although cancer has hit Carney’s family pretty hard, she remains hopeful for the future.

“We’re all still alive and living our lives day by day.”