‘I’ve never felt the same since’- Sylvia Guerra Fortuin: A woman’s experiences with breast cancer

McALLEN, Texas—As her doctor walked into the room that day in 2013, Sylvia Guerra Fortuin knew what he was going to say about her lab results. 

“You have cancer,” the doctor said. 

The diagnosis was stage three breast cancer in her right breast. This meant she needed treatment immediately. “You often hear people say your life can change in an instant. It does. It really does,” Fortuin said. 

The following week, Fortuin underwent her first chemotherapy sessions. However, this was not the first experience with cancer in Fortuin’s life. 

In January 2000, her mother was diagnosed with cancer. While Fortuin said she “lost it” on hearing the news, her mother took the news calmly and was ready to take the next step in her treatment. It was a singular breast removal, and her mother has been cancer-free since. 

When Fortuin was diagnosed, she said she requested her right breast be removed as well, but her doctor only removed a portion of it. During the healing process, Fortuin was diagnosed with osteoporosis. The bones in her neck had become brittle from the chemotherapy, requiring her to get several surgeries. 

“I’m in constant pain,” Fortuin said. “They tell you it takes three to four years for the effect of the chemo to leave your body, but I’ve never felt the same since. It’s an awful medication. Yes, it saves your life—chemotherapy—but it lingers and lingers, and it starts messing with other parts of your body.” 

In April 2019, Fortuin was diagnosed with cancer for the second time in the same breast. However, this time, there were two different types of tumors. 

“Everybody was freaking out because first of all, they didn’t know what gene it was,” she said. “Now it’s coming back after so many treatments, and it was two types of tumors. I needed emergency surgery right away because the cancer was spreading rapidly.”  

This time, her right breast was completely removed. She then began chemotherapy treatment, shortly after recovering from an infection from the breast removal surgery. Her new oncologist recommended that she also removed her left breast, which she did. 

  Now, Fortuin is in what she called “cancer-prevention mode.” She is undergoing surgeries for breast reconstruction, taking medication to reduce the likelihood of cancer returning, and meeting with her oncologist every month. 

According to Fortuin, “I continue having CT scans and other tests because they say that this cancer comes back every five years, and it can come back to your breast, your ovaries, your uterus. With me, it can come back on my pancreas.” 

Although these experiences with cancer have been a struggle, Fortuin said she has never been alone. 

She said her mother and husband have been there for her since she first learned she had cancer, and her son gave her strength. The then 11-year-old boy even shaved Fortuin’s head with his father’s help after her first diagnosis. 

In addition, the cancer affected Fortuin and her husband’s career. 

When she was diagnosed with cancer for the first time, Fortuin and her husband had to close their McAllen-based restaurant, Bistro M. However, former customers wanted to know their cooking styles, so they started the McAllen Culinary Academy. But the academy had to close too when the couple could no longer afford it after her second diagnosis. 

However, upon hearing that news, Fortuin’s friends, community members and businesses in McAllen hosted an event to support Fortuin and her husband. 

The event, called “Savor the Flavor,” helped the couple financially and emotionally. “I can’t explain how grateful I am to the whole community … What they did, they pretty much saved our lives. They helped us get back on our feet. Slowly but surely,” she said. So, what are her plans for the future?

Last month, the 59-year-old became a realtor.

“That made me feel really good and made me more positive because I [have] been kind of down and depressed, of course, and it’s all the medication that they give you that brings you down, but … I have to just keep moving forward,” she said.  

Fortuin also said people have called her “inspiring” and “amazing” but does not view herself that way. She does not want anyone to feel sorry for her either. 

“I just continue to welcome my cancer and I embrace it with love and will continue to create it into something beautiful,” she said. “I don’t want to dwell because I am not the same [as] I was and cancer took my hair, my breasts, my spunk twice already, but it will never take my soul.” 

After dealing with cancer for about eight years, Fortuin said people should check themselves for any lumps and get a mammogram. 

“A lot of people think, when they think [of] cancer, ‘Oh, death, death, death,’” she said. “But that happens if you don’t do what you’re supposed to do. And that is, when you’re in the shower, feel yourself. If you feel a lump, ask your husband to feel it. It doesn’t take much. It’s just common sense. If you feel something hurts, don’t delay going to get checked. A mammogram does not hurt. It’s not scary.”