Victoria Sandora, 33, calls Black Friday 2023 the darkest of Fridays. That is when she received the result of a right breast biopsy — it read cancer.
As she nears the one-year anniversary of her diagnosis, Sandora admits the success of her treatment and recovery journey are in large part due to her Endeavor Health doctors: oncologist Joseph Kash, MD, and surgeon Morta Lapkus, MD.
“I recognized that if my doctors were different, I would have had a different experience,” Sandora said. “When you have cancer, you feel like a test subject, moving from appointment to appointment, making decision after decision. It made all the difference to have this team, especially Dr. Lapkus, who made me feel important.”
Diagnosis to treatment and future focus
Sandora had a history of dense breast tissue and fibroids. She found a lump during a self-breast exam about six months prior to her diagnosis. She did not seek immediate medical attention because of her history.
When the lump grew, she made an appointment with her primary care doctor followed by a mammogram at Endeavor Health’s Edward Womens Imaging Center, and then a biopsy.
Dr. Lapkus said, “Screening is the best way to find a cancer early, before you can even feel anything. By finding something in the earliest stages, patients can sometimes avoid certain treatments, such as chemotherapy.”
“In Victoria’s case, she did the right thing by advocating for herself. Recently, breast cancer is being diagnosed in much younger patients. Even if a patient has a history of breast ‘lumps,’ anything new should be brought to the attention of a physician.”
The diagnosis was triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) in the right breast, and it was very aggressive. Dr. Kash recommended an initial treatment of chemotherapy, followed by surgery, because TNBC does not respond to hormone treatments or HER2 drugs like other forms of breast cancer.
TBNC is considered triple negative because the cancer cells do not have (1) estrogen or (2) progesterone and (3) do not make any or create minimal amounts of HER2 protein (negative for three tests).
Sandora had two rounds of chemotherapy, lasting from December 2023 until April 30, 2024.
Before she began treatment, Sandora underwent an egg retrieval because she hopes to have children in the future. Although she had to leave her job and move in with her mom after her diagnosis, children mean everything to Sandora, a therapist who works mostly with kids who have anxiety, ADHD, depression and other issues.
With her focus on the future, Sandora decided to have a double mastectomy though she had the option to have a lumpectomy. She said, “I’m 33 years old, and I want to have a family someday. While statistically I understand that my form of cancer did not have a high return rate with either a lumpectomy versus a mastectomy, it gave me more peace of mind to completely remove the breast tissue.”
“Dr. Lapkus never questioned my decision,” said Sandora, who considers it serendipitous that she was one of Dr. Lapkus’ last patients before the doctor’s maternity leave and one of Dr. Lapkus’ first surgeries after her leave was over. Sandora’s reconstructive surgery is scheduled for December 2024.
“Dr. Lapkus explained the surgery and risks and answered every question that I had. And yes, she was so nice. But the thing is, most doctors are nice. Dr. Lapkus is genuinely kind, and that’s different than just being nice. She is compassionate and understanding,” Sandora said.
A positive attitude and a new appreciation
As Sandora continues her treatment with immunotherapy, and has been fighting through side effects with gastrointestinal issues and continued fatigue, she no longer feels completely lethargic.
“Whenever I speak to Victoria, she always has a positive attitude,” Dr. Lapkus said. “She has been through so much at such a young age, but she always seems to have a smile on her face.”
Now that Sandora can do activities, she walks with her dog, Ringo, a few times a day. She goes to estate sales and garage sales with her stepdad, Mark, who is her comic relief. Her mom, Veronica, became her main caretaker, and her friends turned into beacons of light.
As a single woman with TNBC who had to stop working for the first time since she was 14 years old, Sandora said, “I would look in the mirror and question who I was. I felt gross and tired, and that was every day. To have friends just show up and tell me stories or talk about their kids was so special to me. They got me to take bites of ice cream and sat with me while I rested.”
Even as a trained therapist, Sandora still uttered “why me?” During her own therapy sessions, she realized she was living the adage that sometimes crappy things just happen. “We try to make meaning out of everything,” Sandora explained. “We try to regain control, but there are some things that we cannot manipulate or even understand. And that scares people; it terrified me.”
“Because of therapy, I understand that cancer is not me. I worked very hard on keeping a positive mindset, looking forward, controlling only what I could. All I was doing was trying to live in the moment and appreciate things more, especially the little things.”
Part of this appreciation shines on her medical team of doctors who, she said, knew how to listen, advocate, guide and provide grace for a patient taking life one day at a time.
“There are many options for surgical treatment, but every patient is different,” Dr. Lapkus said. “I always take into account a patient’s wishes as well as their overall outlook on the disease. Instead of telling patients exactly what to do, I take on the role of a ‘guide.’ I make sure that during my visits patients learn about all of the options available to them. My goal is for a patient to leave my office feeling heard, safe and knowledgeable about treatment options.”
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