When my niece, Penni Buydos, was diagnosed with breast cancer in September 2023, she chose not to dwell on the what-ifs.

A year earlier, a lump had been dismissed as nothing to worry about. Over the next year, as Penni noticed its changes, she pushed for answers — and this time, the news was different.

Rather than focusing on what was missed, Penni decided to look forward.

“There’s nothing to focus on in the past,” she said. “I need to focus on the path forward.”

Her treatment was demanding — beginning with hormone therapy, followed by chemotherapy, surgery, radiation, surgery, and then back to hormone therapy. Each step tested her physically and emotionally, but she tackled them one at a time.

“Once I finished one stage, I moved on to the next,” Penni explained.

Through it all, she

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