'1. Listen to your body… If something does not feel right, go to the doctor right away.'
I was 37 and devastated. With my family and friends rallying behind me, I put on a brave face and started my journey. I quickly found a care team at Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington, Virginia. My first few visits to the doctor's office were a blur as the doctor explained the surgery process. Based on how the tumor looked, the doctor told me, it was a stage 2 diagnosis.
I began to ask myself,"Why me?" But later decided to turn the question around and started asking,"Why not me?" This was the card I was dealt; now it was up to me to FIGHT.Bridgette Johnson is pictured with a friend at her first year survivor party.In 2013, I completed my treatments. I was told that the cancer was gone and I could now continue to live my life. I never forgot about my journey.
Bridgette Johnson celebrates her 40th birthday: "If I was not an advocate for my health, I may not have seen this day." The therapist noticed the swelling and that the skin was glossy and recommended I get an X-ray, which, I was told, looked good and that I could continue therapy. I was able to call 911 -- the phone was in the bathroom with me -- and when I arrived at the emergency room, they took a CT scan of my leg. A doctor showed me the X-ray and I saw a big glob coming out of my femur.I was rushed to another hospital to have part of my femur removed and a rod put in. Prior to the surgery, I was given another scan, this time of my entire body. When the results came back, I was told cancer cells were also in my spine and skull, and the cancer was at stage 4.
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