In 2008, after eight miscarriages and one live birth, Monica received genetic testing to better understand what they were navigating. Through this testing she learned, among other factors, that she has the BRCA1 gene. This (coupled with a strong family history of breast/ovarian cancer) meant she would receive bi-annual breast imaging moving forward. In the last three years these studies have shown increasingly concerning masses and cell irregularly requiring many biopsies and more frequent testing. In Jan 2025 Monica was referred to the MD Anderson Oncology team, where after careful consideration, they decided that on February 5th she will be having a bi-lateral mastectomy with removal of her lymph nodes, nipples. On February 25th she will have a second surgery to preform a hysterectomy and removal of her ovaries. She just turned 37 in January, and while knowing this was inevitable she was not at all prepared for surgery so soon. We would love to change that for her and her family with community support! Due to her chronic and complex health challenges Monica, Mike (her husband) and her care team have decided to forego reconstructive surgery. Monica will have a flat aesthetic closure after surgery. At this time they expect her to spend 2-5 days in the hospital after the mastectomy and a night or so after her hysterectomy followed by 12 weeks of recovery. This timeline is all depending on how her body reacts after surgery and how well managed they can keep her CKD Stage 3b and Lupus. Her medical team expects healing to be longer/more complicated than most because of this. For the first few weeks she will have drains and very limited mobility followed by several more weeks of physical therapy and recovery before she can start acclimating back to normal. Her care team will decided if further therapies such as chemo and/or radiation after needed after pathology has given results on the tissue samples. However, the hope is that early screening did its job and the mastectomy & hysterectomy will do the trick as Monica very much hopes to avoid further intensive treatments if possible. Monica is the proud mother of four children and when she’s not on adventures with them she is a professional nanny/family doula to two adorable infants and their families. As you can imagine her role as a caregiver will need to be put on hold for several months while she focuses on her recovery . This is unfortunately her income source. Her husband Mike is a fantastic OR nurse at Banner, and while he will be able to take the immediate post surgical time off, being their primary income source he will be returning to work shortly after her surgery. This page will serve as a landing base to support Monica, Mike, Mikey, Becca, Annabeth and Emma as they all navigate this challenging time. We hope to support the family by keeping their bellies full and supporting them in having the necessities needed for Monica to rest and focus on her recovery. Thank you for taking the time to read her story and support her family with kind words, positivity and practical needs.