Survivor Stories

Previous Survivor Stories

Q: How did you discover your breast cancer?
A: I had been fibrocystic for years. In fact, I had had 4 benign biopsies, so I was always on top of things - getting mammograms and having exams. This particular time, my vigilance yielded both a clean mammogram and a clean physical exam by my surgeon. He said that everything looked fine but because my tissue was so dense, he ordered an MRI. At that time, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital had just started using MRIs for breasts. The MRI showed something that looked suspicious, so my doctor ordered an ultrasound. Nothing showed up on the ultrasound. My doctor then ordered an MRI-guided biopsy, which detected the cancer. If not for my doctor's persistence, I would be telling a very different story. I have a tremendous amount to be grateful for.

Q: How did you react to the diagnosis?
A: This diagnosis came totally out of the blue. I was absolutely shocked. It was like an out-of-body experience. Generally speaking, breast cancer is diagnosed in someone who feels fine, like I did. It's an invisible disease in that respect and very hard to come to terms with. But you have a choice. You can either despair and stay there, or you can take that negative energy and really build on it and become stronger than you ever were before. Sometimes you think you'll never get through something, but then you do with flying colors.

Q: How were you able to turn the negative into a positive?
A: I joined a Dragon Boat survivor team. It's something I never thought I would or could do. I had played tennis and golf, but never anything that physically demanding. What an empowering sport! It builds upper body strength, fosters camaraderie and creates an instant bond with the other women on the team. It was a fabulous experience. I also work with Thomas Jefferson University Hospital's 'Buddy Program', which matches newly diagnosed patients with women who have been through a similar experience. No one can really address the fears you face unless they've walked in your shoes. Counseling women is very healing to me.

Q: What do you focus on when you are counseling these newly diagnosed women?
A: There's a lot of percentage talk when you are first diagnosed. Certainly it's valid, but you can't get hung up on that. No one ever knows what the future holds, whether you've had breast cancer or not. Since you cannot turn back the clock, you must take what you've been given and run with it. Try things you've never tried before, or just get back into the routine of your everyday life.

Q: What has breast cancer taught you?
A: I believe that women diagnosed with breast cancer will be stronger for this disease. They will tap resources they never knew they had. They'll be stronger and better in many ways. They'll soar.

Leslie currently lives in Philadelphia with her husband, Mike Stiles, and they have a grown son and daughter. She sees her new role with the PA Commission as an opportunity to reach out and do some good. She works toward equality for all women across the state, better education for ourselves and for our children, and encourages more women to run for political office. She observes that she is working with some extraordinary women on the Commission and that "when women work together, there is truly very little that they cannot achieve". Leslie recently served as a workshop presenter at the PBCC's Keystone Breast Cancer Conference in Harrisburg.

To profile someone in "Survivor Spotlight", email Heather Hibshman at heather@pabreastcancer.org