A survivor's journey

IRONWOOD - Barbara Kucera, known as Bobbie by her friends and family, was diagnosed with breast cancer almost nine years ago - the anniversary of her surgery will be April 26, 2016.

And she has had nine wonderful years of being cancer free after a tumultuous month so many years ago.

Bobbie went in to have her yearly mammogram, a routine check-up she had been getting for many years.

"Every year I would get a mammogram and this time they said there was something," she said.

Kucera had her mammogram on March 30, 2007. It was the day after her anniversary and a few days before her husband's birthday.

She was devastated - it was the last thing she wanted or expected to hear.

"So on April 5 I saw Dr. Enrico Braucher and he said it was cancer on the right breast. I had two tumors," she said.

Then on April 9, Kucera had an ultrasound at Aspirus Grand View with radiologist Dr. Donna Cataldo.

"I think what happened then was that they couldn't do anything so Dr. Cataldo sent me to Marquette on April 11 for a biopsy with her girlfriend, Dr. Heidi Henry."

She had two biopsies done by Dr. Henry.

On April 17, Kucera saw Dr. Braucher for a chest x-ray and blood test and just over a week later she had surgery.

"On April 26, I had surgery. I had a double mastectomy," she said.

She remembers waking up from surgery the morning after and getting sick from the Vicodin they had given her, which she said she couldn't take because of the nausea.

She was sick all that day in the hospital, but after that, she was fine. Recovery was relatively smooth and painless for her.

She saw a physical therapist after surgery, as well as a cancer doctor in Ashland who gave her the good news after surgery: "You have 40 years to live.

"It was very good news. That will bring me into my 90s," she said with a smile.

Once a year, she still goes in for a check-up, getting a chest x-ray and blood test to make sure the cancer has not returned, which it has not.

The breast cancer survivor is so thankful for the amazing doctors and medical staff who helped take care of her through her terrifying journey from diagnosis to recovery.

"It was a quick process. I didn't have to have chemo and I didn't have to have radiation. They were able to diagnose me and remove the tumors almost right away," she said.

She did take a preventive pill for five years after surgery, but overall, she was extremely fortunate to have had such a quick process with her breast cancer.

There was a history of breast cancer in her family, with her grandmother on her father's side dying from it.

So with a clean bill of health for almost nine years, Kucera is enjoying life almost as she did before her diagnosis.

She works at Super One grocery store and lives in Ironwood with her husband, who is retired from Angelo Luppino Construction.

She is grateful to be able to live out her life as she always had and looks forward to retiring and living out her days well into old age as a healthy, cancer-free woman.

"I strongly stress that women get their mammograms every year. Don't let that slip by. It's part of what saved my life."

She has always had a positive outlook on life and her friends told her throughout her journey with cancer that she has had such a good attitude.

"If you have to go through something like breast cancer, make sure you have a good attitude. Don't let it beat you emotionally," she said.

To this day, Kucera has a good attitude and outlook about her breast cancer journey.

Editor's note: October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. This is the first of a series of stories about women fighting breast cancer to be presented by the Daily Globe this month. If you'd like to share your story, email managing editor Larry Holcombe at lholcombe@yourdailyglobe.com.