'I found a lump after my bra was pinching me ... now I'm fighting for my life'

“My daughter was two and I’d finished breastfeeding, so I thought it was time to go back to normal. I felt like my bra was pinching me, so I YouTubed how to do a self-check, and I found a lump."

Mum-of-one Joy had just switched back from her maternity bra to a normal bra when she noticed it was “pinching” her.

Slightly concerned, she watched a YouTube video about how to do a self check, and discovered a lump.

“My daughter was two and I’d finished breastfeeding, so I thought it was time to go back to normal,” she told Kidspot.

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“I felt like my bra was pinching me, so I YouTubed how to do a self-check, and I found a lump.

“I mentioned that to my husband, but I told him I'd Googled it and it was telling me it was a fibroid, so we shouldn’t be too worried.”

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Joy with her husband and four-year-old daughter. Picture: Supplied

"I had to make a choice between pregnancy and treatment"

Joy’s husband mentioned the lump to her mum, and she was soon booked in to see a doctor.

Unfortunately, the 34-year-old mum was diagnosed with breast cancer which had metastasized to the lymph nodes under her arm.

Tragically, her treatment options would prevent her from having a second child.

“It was two weeks between my diagnosis and the start of chemo,” she said.

“I had been looking at doing IVF at the time, but I realised I was pregnant and had to make a choice between terminating and starting chemo, or keeping the pregnancy and forgoing treatment.

“Chemo is safe in the late second trimester, but I was only five weeks along. I sought second opinions, spoke to oncologists, and they all told me the growth rate (of the cancer) was so aggressive that termination was the only option.”

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Joy was first diagnosed with breast cancer after noticing her bra was "pinching" her. Picture: Supplied

"My daughter knew something was up"

To make matters worse, Joy had anaphylactic responses to her chemo, and was on a lot of extra medication to “calm everything down”.

She told Kidspot one of the hardest parts of her treatment was trying to explain what was happening to her two-year-old daughter.

“She knew something was up, but it was hard to explain,” she said.

“I shaved my head when my hair started falling out, and she was very intrigued with what was going on.”

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Joy was forced to terminate a pregnancy in order to start her treatment. Picture: Supplied

"I thought that was the hurdle I had to pass"

Joy also underwent a full mastectomy on her left side and a lymph node dissection as well as her chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

“After that primary treatment finished, I had another PET scan which was totally clear,” Joy said.

“I was cheering, I thought that was the hurdle I had to pass, and got on with my life.

“I’d opened my own law firm in August 2021, and the day I walked out of my doctor’s office with the diagnosis, I got a text message from my accountant saying my business was up and running.

“I had worked all through chemo. I’m a positive person, so I just ploughed forward and did it.”

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Joy said her four-year-old was very inquisitive about her cancer battle. Picture: Supplied

"They asked me if I knew about my liver"

Unfortunately, Joy would be rocked by another heart-breaking diagnosis just two months ago.

“I had an ADHD diagnosis, and the medication my psychiatrist gave me was making me nauseous,” she told Kidspot.

“I’d lost my appetite and wasn’t feeling well, but he just told me it was normal.

“He eventually gave me a different medication, but I woke up one morning and realised I was miserable, and these medications suck.

“I stopped taking them, but none of the other symptoms went away.”

Joy went back to her GP, who sent her for scans on her kidneys.

“While I was having that scan, they asked me if I knew about my liver,” she said.

“They said it looked like I had a lot of lesions on my liver, but it was probably a hereditary disease.

“I went back to the GP who said it sounded weird, so I got some more abdominal scans.

“My oncologist sent me for another PET scan, and lo-and-behold there’s cancer in my liver, bones and lymph nodes.”

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Joy was initially cleared of cancer after a round of chemotherapy and other treatments, but has now been given a terminal diagnosis. Picture: Supplied

"If treatment works, we're looking at years"

Tragically, Joy’s most recent diagnosis is terminal, but she still doesn’t know how long she has.

“Because it’s so early, they’re waiting to see if my current treatment plan works,” she said. “If it works, we’re looking at years. If it doesn’t work, we’re looking at less than a year.

“My daughter is now four years old, and she’s so inquisitive and smart. Every time she sees me on Facetime she’ll ask how I’m feeling.

“We’re trying to explain to her I’m sick on the inside, and I’m seeing a psychologist who specialises in cancer, so I’m hoping with her help we’ll find a way to explain it.”

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Joy said she was willing to undergo any treatment as long as she gets one good hour a day to see her family. Picture: Supplied

"I just try to remember it's not today"

Joy said she’s still trying to stay positive for her daughter and husband as she fights the biggest battle of her life.

“I just try to remember it’s not today,” she said. “Today’s not the day I’m going, and that’s how I get through each day.

“I’m still here, and I’m very willing to have any treatment thrown at me. I don’t need to be well all the time, I just need to be well for an hour so my family can see my face.

“As long as I can have that, I’ll do anything they want me to do.”

Editor's Note: Joy sadly lost her battle with breast cancer in September, 2023. 

Originally published as 'I found a lump after my bra was pinching me ... now I'm fighting for my life'