I was told yesterday that I have metastatic triple-negative breast cancer. It is Stage 3 (because it is in the breast and lymph nodes) but if it has spread to other organs then it is Stage 4. They scheduled me for a PET scan on July 21st then chemo on July 28th. They want to do chemo before surgery because surgery delays the chemo and in an aggressive kind of cancer like this, they want to start the chemo right away. If I come down with COVID, it could change these scheduled dates. Stage 3 has an over 50 percent cure rate (the doc was throwing many figures out there, I think he said 55-60) but the chemo is tough. In stage 4, it is incurable but the chemo can extend your life some. If anyone following this thread has a similiar kind of cancer, a family member sent me this:

FDA Approves New Therapy for Triple Negative Breast Cancer That Has Spread, Not Responded to Other Treatments | FDA

I also want to mention, that drinking may have contributed to what I have. During part of my time in college, I tended to binge drink about once a month. My husband and I no longer drink but we did drink a lot on Friday nights (I did not drink much when my children were young and never drank when I knew I was pregnant, only drank once when breast feeding because my MIL babysat for the entire evening, really avoided it when they were toddlers. My H and I waited 5 years to conceive our first child and met in the military where we regularly went to the Officer's Club and owned a sailboat when stationed in Okinawa, Japan.) That I was on oral contraceptives for about 7 years may also be a factor. Drinking causes cell damage. Think of the cancers that we get at an older age as "death by a thousand cuts." Our lifestyle choices do matter and if we are drinking a lot, it could contribute to getting cancer later in life.

Of course, all of your prayers are sincerely appreciated.