-Atrium Health Floyd-
When Carol Yagadics began experiencing pain in one of her breasts, she initially planned to wait until her already scheduled mammogram two months away.
Her husband disagreed. So did her two sons and a friend at work. Their encouragement led her to make an appointment that changed her life.
As Breast Cancer Awareness Month highlights the importance of screening and early detection, Yagadics hopes women will pay attention to changes in their bodies and seek care when something doesn’t feel right.
Her story is one of 20 featured in the Faces of Hope gallery at the Harbin Clinic Cancer Center, where portraits and personal stories offer encouragement to patients and families facing cancer.
On June 15, 2024, Yagadics learned she had Stage 3 HER2-positive breast cancer.
“I think God was telling me, ‘You need to get this looked at,'” she said. “It was Stage 3. God didn’t want me to wait any longer.”
What followed was a whirlwind of appointments, tests, and treatment recommendations. Her physicians recommended chemotherapy, surgery and radiation.
“It was kind of numbing,” she recalled. “I felt like I wasn’t there.”
During appointments, Yagadics’s husband took notes because she often struggled to process the information being shared.
She also learned something sobering. The cancer had likely been growing undetected despite annual mammograms.
“It hit me hard,” she said. “I’m a healthy person. I’ve never had anything really wrong. If I had not told them it was hurting, they would have done a mammogram and sent me home for six months.”
The physical challenges of treatment were significant, but Yagadics said she wasn’t prepared for the emotional toll.
“People don’t realize, when you are home and in bed, how depressing it can get,” she said.
Support came from unexpected places. A children’s Sunday School class sent her cards. Coworkers checked on her frequently and reminded her she remained in their prayers.
Today, chemotherapy and surgery are behind her, and she has returned to work with a new perspective.
“Cancer has changed me,” said Yagadics, who describes herself as a former workaholic. “When you are a woman who does it all and doesn’t ask for help and then you can’t, it humbles you. It makes you appreciate your family more.”
That appreciation extends beyond family.
“I talk more with my co-workers. I try to say hello to people I don’t even know,” she said. “Cancer changed all of us. It makes you appreciate life.”
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