Kristy Salvador of Oswego shares her experience with breast cancer
By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Oswego resident Kristy Salvador had regularly received mammograms since she was 40 and never gave it a second thought; however, the mammogram she had in early 2022 revealed a 1 centimeter tumor that resulted in a cancer diagnosis after a subsequent sonogram.
“I had a breast exam just before that and my doctor didn’t feel it and the surgeon couldn’t even feel it,” Salvador.
She had a lumpectomy with a guided mammogram. This enabled her surgeon at Oswego Health to zero in on the tumor and reduce the invasiveness of the surgery.
“I was very, very lucky as it was triple negative breast cancer that’s aggressive and grows quickly,” Salvador said.
Her treatment moved swiftly with a diagnosis in February 2022, lumpectomy in March at Upstate University Hospital and chemotherapy beginning in April at Oswego Health, followed by 44 radiation treatments, also at Oswego Health. She finished treatment in April 2023.
“My tumor was very small but because it was triple negative, they wanted to make sure no cancer cells escaped,” Salvador said.
She receives a mammogram each January and a breast MRI each July. At her last mammogram, her provider found calcifications. A magnified mammogram showed that there weren’t any changes, meaning that the tissue is probably tissue trauma from radiation and lumpectomy. She will have another magnified mammogram in March.
“It’s nerve wracking when you have scans,” Salvador said. “It’s traumatizing. But I’d rather do that and have them catch it quicker if something does recur. The longer you go without reoccurrence with triple negative, the chances of it recurring goes down.”
She credits the support of her family and friends as helping her through her ordeal, along with talking to people who have been through breast cancer and who could give her hope that things will get better. Salvador also began attending yoga classes at Peaceful Remedies in Oswego and volunteers there as well.
As for how to support women with breast cancer, Salvador said that it’s not that helpful to say, “What can I do?” because that only adds to the mental burden.
She advises to just go ahead and do something, like offer to take the children for a treatment day, drop off a casserole (use a disposable container or a dish you won’t need back), gas station or restaurant gift card, or groceries and household supplies. Salvador appreciated when people sent her cards or dropped by after asking if she was up to a visit.
“I was trying to keep my life the same as possible,” she said. “I worked through all my treatment from home. People said I could’ve gone on disability but I needed something for my brain. I needed something to focus on.”
She works as an early childhood coordinator at HeadStart. Staying busy helped keep her from “wallowing in it,” she said. “There were days where I didn’t feel good but I tried to get out and walk even if just around the block. You shouldn’t isolate yourself. Ask for help. And receive help. Some people have a really hard time receiving help, like I was but I learned.”
In her post-treatment era, Salvador worked hard at regaining the fitness level she had lost by working out at Hardcore Fit in Fulton. She also enjoys gardening.
Salvador encourages women to perform regular self-breast exams and receive mammograms as recommended. She feels confident that if she had skipped hers, her cancer would have been much more invasive.
Salvador and a group of friends formed the Hooter Crew. The five women group hosts pledge-funded walks to raise contributions to organizations such as Saint Agatha Foundation.
“It’s gotten bigger each year,” Salvador said.