GREENSBORO, N.C. – A fog of uncertainty and fear gripped
Stefani Workman after hearing the voice on the other end of the phone confirming her test results.
Her world paused.
A blur of thoughts raced through the UNC Greensboro (UNCG) assistant women's soccer coach's mind.
How could this be?
At 30 years old, Workman was living her dreams as a head soccer coach at Concord University in West Virginia. Workman was home alone, sitting on the couch when she felt an unusual lump while scratching something that itched. That triggered an immediate concern.
"I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach and was like that's not normal," Workman said. "As women, we know our bodies. It wasn't something that I had felt before. Right after that, I called our athletic trainer to see if I could see our physician in the athletic department, who came on campus once a week."
One examination wasn't enough to determine a diagnosis. The first biopsy was negative. However, there still wasn't relief since Workman's doctor had a feeling that more testing was needed.
"He referred me to the breast center in Morgantown, West Virginia at WVU to get a specialized biopsy," Workman said. "I drove three hours for a second biopsy which is called a stereotactic one. It's more specific and guided. They had called me and told me they had found it."
It.
Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), a form of early-stage, non-invasive breast cancer that had not spread past the milk duct walls, on her right side.
"All you hear is cancer," Workman said. "You don't hear anything else after that. I mean, I think in the back of your head you always kind of think the worst. But in your mind as an athlete and a coach I'm always optimistic."
Every day is special for Workman, who as a blessed breast cancer survivor has a deeper appreciation for life. It's been seven years since Workman underwent a right-sided mastectomy on her right breast on July 1, 2013.
"Scars are stories," Workman said. "It is a story you get to tell. I'm proud of myself. I fought through something very difficult in a moment in a young person's life and I came out on the other side happy and healthy. Hopefully, I can help change someone's life or help push someone to understand their body enough and be able to catch it early just like I did."
Workman's positive attitude and fighting spirit helped her conquer her toughest adversary.
Even though she was back on the sidelines and coaching in less than two months after her initial surgery, the road to recovery was arduous for Workman, who had to drive three hours one-way from Concord to Morgantown at least three times a month for a combination of treatments and follow-up visits.
She was fortunate that she didn't have to undergo any chemotherapy or radiation treatments. Instead, she was given tamoxifen, a hormone-receptor-positive blocker pill that helps reduce the risk of the breast cancer returning.
"Over the next six months, I went up once a week to get saline put into the expander, which is the first step before placing the permanent implant under the skin to complete the reconstructive surgery," Workman said. "My appointment to inject expander was only about 30 minutes, and then I would turn around and drive back to Concord. So sometimes it was a 6-hour round trip. Sometimes I would do it on the same day. I would get up early, go to my appointment, and have practice in the afternoon. It was a good time to reflect on life and have that time to myself.
"If you sit around too long and start thinking about it, you can end up in a dark place," Workman said. "Being negative and being scared and all those things are normal. But it's just kind of a quick mindset to take a deep breath and you know the next day is another opportunity to be better than yesterday."
Unfortunately, not every story has a happy ending.
The reality is that there will be 42,000 breast cancer deaths in 2020 alone according to Jennifer Hawasli, MD, a fellowship-trained breast surgeon with Lawrence Breast Specialists, located in the new Women's Center at LMH Health West Campus in Lawrence, Kansas. One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetimes.
"A lot of young people don't talk about the experiences they've had," Workman said. "But their moms have it. Their aunts have breast cancer, their grandmothers, their best friend's mother. Everyone has someone they probably know who has been impacted by breast cancer."
The need for women to know their bodies and get breast examinations along with regular check-ups is crucial.
"I was 30 at the time going through the process, and young women don't think about that," Workman said. "They're like 'oh it's only in older people'; but it's not, it's also in younger people. I just actually had my follow up appointments this past summer. I was talking to one of the ladies in there, and the youngest patient right now is 23. So, it's keeping it in the forefront of your mind that women need to know their bodies."
Those statistics are one reason why Workman has transformed her recovery into purpose.
She has championed a Pink Game at each university she has coached at, which raises awareness for breast cancer. While at Concord University, she helped raise funds through a "Pink Strong" campaign that resulted in $5,000 raised and donated toward a mobile mammogram unit in Morgantown that drove into the rural areas of the state to help with screening.
Since leaving Concord, Workman has coached at the University of Dayton and the University of Georgia before arriving at UNCG. Since Workman has been at UNCG, the Spartan women's soccer program has assisted with the Cone Health Women's Only 5K Walk & Run, and each year their annual pink game has grown significantly.
"As you get older as a coach, especially going through an experience like that, it puts the human part back in athletics and leadership. It helps you understand that everyone is going through something," Workman said. "I reflect on how lucky I am. Early detection saves lives, I will be preaching that for the rest of my life for sure because that saved my life."