Understanding HER2-Positive Breast Cancer
Stage 4 HER2+ breast cancer is a form of metastatic breast cancer that has spread beyond the breast and nearby lymph nodes. The HER2 protein drives faster growth — but also makes the disease responsive to targeted therapy. This project bridges the science with one woman's 19-year lived experience.
Science meets the human story
The Biology
What HER2 receptors do, why overexpression drives aggressive growth, and how it metastasizes.
ExploreThe Treatment
Chemotherapy, Herceptin, radiation, and Arimidex — and the toll each one takes on the body.
ExploreThe Interview
A 19-year stage 4 survivor speaks candidly about diagnosis, fear, faith, and finding meaning.
ExploreI realized how quickly everything can be taken. Cherish.
A "cell eater" — described by the patient herself
HER2-positive cancers overexpress the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 — a protein that, in normal amounts, helps regulate cell growth. When overproduced, it drives uncontrolled, rapid division.
This is what makes HER2+ disease so aggressive — and exactly why targeted therapies like Herceptin transformed survival rates after their approval in the late 1990s.
Read her story in her own words
A candid conversation about diagnosis, treatment, family, and finding meaning after a stage 4 diagnosis.
Read the Full Interview