Tasha Gardner of Brunswick was 33 in late 2011 when she discovered a lump
deep within her left breast. She was referred to a surgeon after a needle
biopsy revealed she had stage 2, triple negative breast cancer, an aggressive
type of breast cancer that doesn’t respond to many of the most commonly
used treatments.
Gardner chose to have her cancer treatments in her hometown at the Southeast
Georgia Health System Cancer Care Center. She was treated with chemotherapy
for eight months under the medical direction of Abraham Cheong, M.D.,
board-certified medical oncologist with Southeast Georgia Physicians Associates-Hematology
& Oncology, a strategic affiliate of the Health System, before having
a mastectomy. Treatment continued with radiation therapy for five weeks
under the medical direction of Kenyon Meadows, M.D., board-certified radiation
oncologist with Southeast Georgia Physician Associates-Radiation Oncology.
“I was very comfortable with my decision to have my cancer treatment
locally,” she says. “My physicians were excellent. Everyone
at the Cancer Care Center is so nice and friendly, and they always made
me feel right at home during my treatments.”
Gardner finished her cancer treatment in January 2013 and feels positive
about the future. She gives the following advice to women. “If you
suspect you have a lump, don’t ignore it. Do yourself a favor and
contact your doctor right away.”