MY LIFE Matters - Spring 2024 - 30

Becoming Empowered STRENGTH, ADVOCACY, AND FAMILY
Empowerment Means
Resilience Rising
HOW I REMAIN EMPOWERED
KATRINA M. JOHNSON, U. S. DIRECTOR, ADVOCACY & PROFESSIONAL RELATIONS, PFIZER ONCOLOGY,
PROUD MEMBER OF THE PFIZER BUTTERFLY CLUB
E
mpowerment, according to Merriam
Webster means the act or action of empowering
someone or something: the granting of
power, right, or authority to perform various
acts or duties. To me, quite simply, this word
means strength, because knowledge is power,
and I am grateful that although I have been
told that I have cancer five different times, I
remain empowered. " This has allowed me to help others, and I believe
that is a key purpose in my life. My story is one of genetics. My Mom,
an inspirational warrior who is the smartest person I know and can
do literally anything, had triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) in
her 70s. Despite her diagnosis, she does not carry the BRCA1 mutation.
My Dad, on the other hand, does carry the BRCA1 mutation. A
retired veteran of the United States Air Force and my personal hero,
his story involves a prostate cancer diagnosis with a recurrence in his
70s, as well as three diagnoses of melanoma in different areas, along
with too many basal and squamous cell cancer lesions to count. My
paternal Grandmother died at 58 years of age of " cancer of the female
type, " which we now know likely started as either breast or ovarian
cancer. Her Mom, my great Grandmother, died of metastatic breast
cancer at just 40 years of age.
Three times I have been told that I had TNBC, and I have twice
been told that I had melanoma within the last 22 years. TNBC is
the most aggressive type of breast cancer, with the fewest treatment
options, and is very common among the Black and African AmerTo
me, the word empowerment means having a support
system that will stand by your side as you go through
adversity. I think of my Mom when I hear this word because
of her tireless efforts to empower other patients throughout the
U.S., and the friends and family who have stood by her
and supported her through all her cancer diagnoses.
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MY LIFE MATTERS
EMPOWERED | SPRING 2024

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/empower https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/empower

MY LIFE Matters - Spring 2024

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