Donna, a dedicated human resources consultant in her 50s, has navigated metastatic breast cancer tests, treatments, setbacks, and successes with humor, purpose, and strength, anchored by the love of her husband, adult children, and close friends. She believes in staying positive and filling her time with the things that bring her joy, including walking, reading, traveling, live music, and photography. She lives in Delaware with her husband of more than 30 years.
Donna’s Story
Donna learned from biomarker testing that her breast cancer had a mutation in the PIK3CA gene.
Donna learned from biomarker testing that her breast cancer had a mutation in the PIK3CA gene.
Every patient experience is unique. TRUQAP® (capivasertib) + fulvestrant is approved for the treatment of adults with hormone receptor (HR)-positive, HER2-negative locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer.
“Get up, dress up, and show up.”
Seeing Every Day as a Good Day
Seeing Every Day as a Good Day
Trusting Her Instincts and Getting Support
Trusting Her Instincts and Getting Support
Donna was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer after experiencing a strange sensation. “During one of my walks, I kept getting pains throughout the right side of my body,” she recalls. “My husband and I went straight to the ER, and the doctor sent me for an ultrasound. They told me that I had metastatic breast cancer.”
Following diagnosis, Donna received biomarker testing, which revealed that her breast cancer was HR+. The results helped inform Donna’s treatment options.
Based on the unique qualities of her cancer, Donna was treated with a CDK4/6 inhibitor and hormone therapy for two years.
Continued Treatment
and Testing
Continued Treatment
and Testing
Throughout the course of her treatment, Donna received ongoing biomarker testing to better understand how her disease may have changed or evolved. Biomarker testing revealed that the cancer had a mutation in the PIK3CA gene. This mutation can contribute to the growth and spread of metastatic breast cancer. Donna’s doctor prescribed TRUQAP + fulvestrant, which disrupts signals from certain proteins that can drive cancer growth.
Donna appreciated that her doctor recommended the testing, which led to the new direction in treatment. “I was not aware of biomarker testing and the different mutations before being diagnosed with cancer,” she says. “My doctor talked me through the benefits and risks of all treatments, and we made educated decisions together.”
Donna felt she had found the support she needed. “This was the best care team I've ever had,” she says. “My doctor went through everything about the treatment—what it is, what it's supposed to do, what the side effects are, when to contact her.”
As her cancer continued to progress, Donna discontinued treatment with TRUQAP + fulvestrant.
“My doctor talked me through the benefits and risks of all treatments, and we made educated decisions together.”
Humbly Blessed
Humbly Blessed
Throughout her journey, Donna has met each challenge with optimism and grace. She credits her network of support.
“I’m humbly blessed,” she says. “I have my husband, I have my kids, I have my siblings, my mom, my friends. I know in the midst of this journey, I'm super blessed.”
She encourages other people living with metastatic breast cancer to be involved in treatment decisions and to find care teams who listen to and support them. “My doctor is fantastic,” she says. “She stresses that treatment is a group decision and makes sure I’m fully involved in all decisions. The team makes sure I am equipped with all the information I need.”
Embracing the Happy
Donna believes in appreciating life’s joyful moments and taking things day by day. “I embrace the happy in life,” she says. “My friends always send me anything funny, because I love jokes. I should have been the dad, because I love dad jokes. And my husband hates them!”
She reflects on the possible effects of stress on cancers. “I wish I had understood the impact of stress on cancer, because I would have made lifestyle changes. I used to be like the Energizer Bunny—multitasking was my middle name.”
She hopes to join or start a support group focused on finding joy while living with metastatic breast cancer. “It would be lovely to find a group that says, yeah, we’re going through this awful thing, but how do we have fun still? How do we find ways to still live life and be positive?”
Today, she’s living her motto of “Get up, dress up, and show up” and keeping busy. “I want to take pictures and make a book of photography. I want to live while I'm living. That's who I am, and that's how I function.”
“I embrace the happy in life.”
Biomarker testing can help inform treatment options for metastatic breast cancer. If you have HR+/HER2- metastatic breast cancer that has progressed on or after hormone therapy, and you test positive for abnormal PIK3CA, AKT1, and/or PTEN genes, then TRUQAP + fulvestrant may be a treatment option for you.
Learn More About TRUQAP + fulvestrant
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AKT1=serine/threonine protein kinase 1; HER2-=human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 negative; HR+=hormone receptor positive; PIK3CA=phosphatidylinositol-4, 5-bisphosphate 3-kinase catalytic subunit alpha; PTEN=phosphatase and tensin homolog.
