Daughter Helps Mom In Fight Against Breast Cancer
By Amelia Santaniello, WCCO-TV
(WCCO) -- Peggy Roy has an extra reason to feel comfortable at Park Nicollet's Jane Brattain Breast Center. That's where her daughter, Kathy Wilson, works and where Peggy has been treated. Twice.
"She knew what to do," Peggy said. "She knew who to contact and it really helped."
Doctors discovered a 2.5 centimeter tumor 10 years ago. It was a shock because the family had no breast cancer history.
Kathy insisted that her mother come down from Grand Rapids to be treated at Park Nicollet, which was doing a new kind of surgery at the time. Everything went well and five years later, Peggy celebrated her milestone with a surprise, a pink ribbon tattooed on her shoulder.
"Well, a lot of people that I showed, friends and immediate family, were quite surprised," she said about her subtle badge of honor. "But they thought it was pretty neat too. It was just a good way to celebrate that five-year period."
She wasn't done with cancer. Two years ago, they found a lump in her other breast. Fortunately, mammography caught it very early.
"They caught that so minutely," she said. "It was like a grain of salt, they said. And I had it taken care of right away and so far, so good."
Peggy been cancer free for almost two years, but mother and daughter have been changed forever. For Kathy, it shows with her patients.
"You don't have to tell them that you know that there's someone in your life that has breast cancer," she said. "Because you know how that person feels, so you can help them without saying my mom had it too."
