COLUMBIA, S.C. — Patricia Jackson proudly wears a shirt with the word survivor across her chest. It's a visual reminder to anyone who sees her that if she is beating breast cancer, it's possible for anyone to win the same battle.
In July of 2022, just six months after a mammogram, Jackson found a lump in her breast. Her doctors would later identify the mass as triple negative breast cancer. Triple negative is one of the most aggressive forms of the disease.
Doctors at Lexington Medical Center worked quickly to give Jackson the best chance at beating the disease. Her course of treatment would include a double mastectomy, eight rounds of chemotherapy and autoimmune therapy.
Jackson is a wife and mother of three. Her diagnosis came along with the realization that she tested positive for a gene mutation that leads to ovarian cancer, breast cancer and prostate cancer. Jackson is the first person she knows of in her family to have breast cancer.
Unfortunately, she's not new to the heartache of hearing a loved one has been diagnosed with cancer. Her mother passed away from leukemia in 1996. Her father is 86 years old and a prostate cancer survivor. She says watching her parents was all the motivation she needed to know that she had to fight for herself and her family.
Her daughter is an oncology nurse, her oldest son has a PhD and is married to a doctor, and her youngest son is completing veterinarian school. She says the news was difficult for her children to hear, but with each having a background in medicine they were able to tackle all of the tough conversations together.
Jackson encourages everyone to take their health seriously and to act quickly if something doesn't seem right. Healthcare experts agree, early detection is the key to saving your life when it comes to breast cancer. Talk to your doctor about your family medical history and the right time for you to begin your annual mammogram.