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This story first appeared in HER Stories 2025, an annual special section that features Eastern Iowa women who have experienced powerful paths of achievement for themselves, their families and their communities.

When she learned about her breast cancer diagnosis, Cathy Ketton already knew it was coming.

However, her doctor told the Waterloo, Iowa, woman he could not find the lump two times.

“I knew I felt a lump in my chest. When it was confirmed, I was not shocked. I made an appointment with Mayo Clinic and the Cancer Treatment Center in Waterloo,” Ketton said.

Her diagnosis in August 2022: non-invasive ductal carcinoma in situ, stage 1-2 triple negative breast cancer.

Ketton’s assumption

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