Last December, a Cutler Bay mother found a lump in her breast. Just months later, her 29-year-old daughter found one, too.
This Mother's Day, the pair will be battling breast cancer together.
Diana Serano and Miriam Fajardo have always been close and similar. They are both also moms of three.
“When I was diagnosed, I think we all go through that shock, but I was okay. I was okay take it one step at a time,” Diana Serano told NBC 6.
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But when Diana found out her daughter had been diagnosed, everything changed.
"When I found out my daughter was diagnosed. It changed a lot. It changed a lot. It felt like my strength went out the window because we're talking about my baby now,” said Diana.
The mother-daughter duo have the same type of cancer, in the same spot, and are undergoing the same type of treatment.
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“It's triple positive, Invasive Ductal Carcinoma and we found out 3 months apart,” said Fajardo.
Right around that time, Diana’s sister in New Jersey went to get tested too. Antonia also tested positive for breast cancer.
When asked if it's comforting to see a family member go through this with you or if it makes it harder, Serano said:
“It hurts, it hurts, but it’s comforting to know that we reach out to each other."
“For me, I hate to see my mom go through it. The tough thing for me was when I had a lump and I was feeling it, my mother was diagnosed so it kind of elevated my anxiety but it also was really hard for me because I had my own issues that I wasn’t speaking about. I kept it private for a while trying to comfort my mom so it was extremely difficult but we have a great support system,” said Fajardo.
The support is coming from others too, like 305 PINK PACK. It’s a local organization that provides direct and support services for free to women going through cancer treatment in Miami-Dade, helping to ease some of the stress that comes with a diagnosis.
“It’s an unfortunate experience but if I can get a message out there it would be you’re not too young, cancer does not discriminate,” said Fajardo.
Both Miriam and Diana are now undergoing chemo treatment. Doctors told Miriam her tumor shrank from 3 centimeters to half a centimeter after just one round.
The diagnosis brings new meaning to Mother's Day.
“Definitely, yes. Mother's Day has always been special but this year it's a little more special. We're both fighting this battle and it’s a journey for me it's enlightening,” said Fajardo.
Both Miriam and Diana are now scheduled to have double mastectomy’s in the coming months. Diana’s sister, Antonia, just had a procedure this week. While they all tested negative for the BRCA gene, doctors believe genetics played a role because they all have HER2+ Breast Cancer.
