CANCER AWARENESS MONTH AND TODAY IS SPECIFICALLY METASTATIC BREAST CANCER AWARENESS DAY.

AMANDA THEISEN WAS 39 YEARS OLD WHEN SHE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH STAGE 4 METASTATIC BREAST CANCER IN 2021.

SHE WAS ONLY 39 YEARS OLD AT THE TIME.

SHE'S HERE TO SHARE HER JOURNEY WITH US.

NICE TO HAVE YOU HERE.

>> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME, I APPRECIATE IT.

>> Cathy: GOSH, AT THE AGE OF 39, YOU'RE TOO YOUNG TO HAVE REGULAR MAMMOGRAMS, SO I'M ASSUMING WHEN YOU FOUND A LUMP, THE CANCER THE ALREADY SPREAD?

>> YEAH, IT WAS SHOCKING, JUST A COUPLE OF WEEKS BEFORE I FOUND THE LUMP, I HAD GONE IN FOR A PHYSICAL AND THE DOCTOR HAD PERFORMED A BREAST EXAM AND NOTHING WAS DETECTED.

ABOUT THREE WEEKS LATER, I WAS DOING A SELF-EXAM, I HAD -- I USUALLY DO THOSE, I'M PRETTY DILIGENT ABOUT THOSE AND THAT'S WHEN I FOUND MY LUMP.

SO I WENT THIS RIGHT AWAY, BACK TO THE DOCTOR AND THEY SAID, YEP, THIS IS -- LET'S GET THIS CHECKED OUT.

SO HAD A MAMMOGRAM, ULTRASOUND AND A BIOPSY, AND IT WAS ON THE BIOPSY TABLE WHEN THAT DOCTOR SAID, I'M VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THIS.

AND THAT WAS KIND OF WHEN IT CLICKED IN MY MIND THAT THIS WAS GOING TO BE SOMETHING PRETTY SEVERE AND ABOUT 4 HOURS LATER, THAT'S WHEN I GOT THE CALL THAT IT WAS BREAST CANCER.

I WENT THROUGH A BUNCH OF OTHER TESTS, ONE OF THOSE WAS A PET CT WHICH LOOKS FOR CANCER IF IT HAS SPREAD THROUGHOUT THE BODY.

ON THAT TEST, THEY FOUND A SMALL SPOT ON A HIP BONE.

SO I WENT IN TO HAVE THAT BIOPSIED AND THAT ENDED UP TESTING POSITIVE FOR BREAST CANCER, SO THAT OFFICIALLY MADE ME STAGE 4 METASTATIC, AGAIN, LIKE YOU SAID, AT THE AGE OF 39.

>> Cathy: WHICH THAT NEWS HIT YOU LIKE A TON OF BRICKS.

>> IT WAS REALLY DIFFICULT TO PROCESS BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, THE MESSAGE I THINK A LOT OF TIMES THAT COMES OUT, ESPECIALLY DURING BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH, IS IF YOU GET IT -- IF YOU CATCH IT EARLY, IT WILL BE AT AN EARLY STAGE.

WELL, IN THE CASE OF ME AND A LOT OF OTHER STAGE 4 PATIENTS WHO ARE MY AGE AND EVEN YOUNGER, THAT'S NOT ALWAYS HE CASE.

LIKE, I CAUGHT MINE EARLY AND WENT IN RIGHT AWAY.

IT WAS STILL AT STAGE FOUR BY THE TIME I GOT ALL THE RESULTS BACK.

>> Cathy: WE SHOULD SAY, THIS IS INCURABLE SO, REALLY, WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING AT ARE TREATMENTS TO EXTEND LIFE.

>> EXTENDS LIFE AND EXTEND QUALITY OF LIFE.

>> Eric: WHAT WAS YOUR FOCUS OR YOUR GOAL IN GOING PUBLIC?

>> I THINK TO BRING MORE AWARENESS TO IT.

I DON'T THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE - REALIZE THAT IF THEY KNOW SOMEONE WHO HAS DIED OF BREAST CANCER, IT IS MOST LIKELY METASTATIC BREAST CANCER BECAUSE ONCE THE CANCER SPREADS TO OTHER PARTS OF THE BODY, SUCH AS THE -- IN MY CASE, THE BONES OR IT COULD SPREAD TO OTHER ORGANS LIKE THE LUNGS OR THE LIVER OR THE BRAIN, THEN IT BECOMES INCURABLE, IT BECOMES A DEADLY DISEASE AND I THINK THE OTHER THING THAT IS REALLY SHOCKING WHEN I TELL PEOPLE THIS, THEY GET THAT SHOCKED LOOK ON THEIR GUYS, OUT OF ALL THE MONEY THAT'S RAISED FOR BREAST CANCER AWARENESS, ONLY 2 TO 5% OF THAT MONEY GOES TO STAGE 4 METASTATIC BREAST CANCER RESEARCH.

>> Cathy: THAT IS SURPRISING.

>> THAT'S 2 TO 5% FOR THE ONLY CANCER THAT IS DEADLY.

>> Eric: WOW.

>> Cathy: I WOULD THINK IF YOU SPENT MORE MONEY ON RESEARCH, WHATEVER THAT WOULD BE FOUND TO BE THE MECHANISMS TO MAKE THE ANCER SPREAD COULD BE HELPFUL IN OTHER CANCERS, PERHAPS.

>> I THINK SO.

I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, ANY STAGE FOUR METASTATIC CANCER I THINK NEEDS MORE ATTENTION AND MORE RESEARCH.

IN MY CASE, I AM NOW TAKING AN ORAL DRUG THAT HAS -- WAS APPROVED BY THE F.D.A.

YOU KNOW, NOT TOO LONG AGO, MAYBE FOUR, FIVE YEARS AGO, AND THAT HAS ACTUALLY HELPED ME EXTEND MY LIFE EXPECTANCY, HOPEFULLY, I'M ONLY TWO YEARS IN SO HOPEFULLY IT WILL GIVE ME A LONGER LIFESPAN.

AND A BETTER QUALITIES OF LIFE.

I CAN ALREADY SENSE THE BETTER QUALITIES OF LIFE NOW BECAUSE I'M, YOU KNOW -- I DON'T LOOK PSYCHIATRIST RIGHT NOW, I MEAN, YOU PROBABLY WOULDN'T KNOW THAT I HAVE DEADLY DISEASE IF WE JUST PASSED ON THE STREET ORR JUST WERE HAVING COFFEE OR SOMETHING, BUT I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT IS ALLOWING ME TO HAVE A BETTER QUALITIES OF LIFE.

I'M STILL ABLE TO DO A LOT OF THE THINGS I WAS ABLE TO DO BEFORE I HAD CANCER AND I THINK, AGAIN, THAT'S A TESTAMENT TO THE RESEARCH THAT HAS SO FAR HAPPENED BUT SO MUCH MORE NEEDS TO HAPPEN IN ORDER TO HELP MOOR PATIENTS LIKE ME.

>> Eric: YOU TALK ABOUT BEING NOT A SURVIVOR BUT A THRIVER.

>> UH-HUH.

>> Eric: WHAT'S THAT ALL ABOUT?

>> SO, IN THE CANCER COMMUNITIES, WHEN YOU ARE CONSIDERED A CANCER SURVIVOR, IT REALLY MARKS AN END TO YOUR TREATMENT.

LIKE, YOU'RE DONE WITH CHEMO, YOU'RE DONE WITH RADIATION OR SURGERY, YOU GET TO RING THAT HE WILL ABOUT, YOU GET TO SAY "I AM DONE WITH MY CANCER TREATMENT."

BECAUSE I HAVE STAGE FOUR AND BECAUSE IT'S AN INCURABLE DISEASE, I WILL ALWAYS BE ON SOME SORT OF TREATMENT, I WILL NEVER GET TO RING THAT BELL.

I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH LONGER I HAVE SO INSTEAD OF CALLING MYSELF A THRIVENNER, I DON'T GET TO CLAIM SURVIVORSHIP BUT WE GETS TOO CLAIM THAT WE'RE STILL ABLE TO THRIVE EACH WITH CANCER IN OUR SYSTEM.

>> Cathy: ARE YOU DOING OKAY?

YOU'RE WEARING PINK, I APPRECIATE THAT BUT THERE'S SO -- PINK IS PERVASIVE THIS TIME OF THE YEAR, RIGHT?

>> IT'S A LOT.

SO I AM WEARING PINK.

I HAPPEN TO LIKE THE SHIRT SO THAT'S -- I'M OKAY WITH THAT, BUT, YES, YOU KNOW, OCTOBER, THERE'S OBVIOUSLY A LOT OF PINK GOING ON.

YOU SEE IT IN YOUR Facebook FEEDS, YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA FEEDS, IN STORES, THERE ARE SO MANY PINK PRODUCTS AND THE RIBBON IS SLAPPED EVERYWHERE.

SO ONE THING I'VE REALLY COME TO TELL MY FAMILY AND FRIENDS AND ANYONE WHO WILL LISTEN IS MAKE SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU ARE -- WHEN YOU'RE SPENDING MONEY OR THINKING ABOUT BREAST CANCER AWARENESS, MAKE SURE YOU'RE PUTTING YOUR DOLLARS TOWARDS MEANINGFUL RESEARCH.

NOT ALL PINK PRODUCTS AND RIBBON AWARENESS CAMPAIGNS ACTUALLY FUND MEANINGFUL RESEARCH.

A LOT OF THEM ARE USED AS MARKETING AND P.R.

TOOLS SO I WANT PEOPLE TO BE THOUGHTFUL ABOUT, IF YOU SEE PINK PRODUCTS, YOU KNOW, ASK THE QUESTIONS.

IS THIS ACTUALLY FUNDING RESEARCH?

IS IT FUNDING BREAST CANCER AWARENESS RESEARCH?

WHAT KIND OF RESEARCH?

AND WHERE IS THE MONEY GOING BECAUSE NOT ALL BREAST CANCER ORGANIZATIONS ARE THE SAME.

ONE THAT I'M REALLY MASH THAT THE ABOUT IS METAVIBER, THEY PUT MONEY SPECIFICALLY TOWARDS STAGE 4, 100% OF THE ONEY GOES TO STAGE 4.

THAT CAN'T BE SAID OF ALL ORGANIZATIONS.

>> Cathy: AMANDA, WE WISH YOU, OF COURSE, ALL THE BEST.

>> Eric: