I was just beginning a new chapter of my life when I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2019 at the age of 73.
Several months prior, my husband had passed away after a 12-year fight with prostate cancer. That left me alone in a large home with 13 rooms. Two of my girlfriends encouraged me to move to an apartment complex for seniors in Pittston, Pennsylvania, about two hours north of Philadelphia.
My name is Amy Wolf and I am a breast cancer survivor who was treated at Fox Chase Cancer Center.
Before my diagnosis, I worked with preschoolers, acting as an aid for children with autism. After going in for an annual physical, my doctor felt a lump in my left breast, but when she placed my hand on it, I couldn’t feel it.
For decades, my healthcare routine was the same: When I scheduled my annual mammogram to screen for breast cancer, I also booked an appointment for a preventative transvaginal ultrasound. That’s because my sister survived a bout with uterine cancer 40 years ago, and our family history could put me at risk of developing the same cancer.
I am 84 years old and I just moved to an over-55 community with my husband, George, last year. Since I retired from secretarial and real estate work about two decades ago, I’ve kept busy by joining a knitting group, gardening, and going to the gym.
