For Karen Anaszewicz, it all happened in the span of two weeks that began at St. Catherine Hospital. She found a suspicious lump and got a mammogram; her doctors then sent her for an ultrasound and a biopsy to get more information. Days after the tests, she got the results back saying that she had stage two grade three invasive ductal carcinoma, a type of breast cancer.
“I was diagnosed with stage two, invasive ductal carcinoma, grade three, so it was extremely aggressive cancer," said Anaszewicz. “I was quite blessed to have caught it at all while it was still treatable.”
On May 31, 2022, Anaszewicz had to have major surgery to remove the cancer. Her treatment included five months of chemotherapy and one month of radiation treatments which she has just finished up in March.
“It's definitely been a journey,” said Anaszewicz “When I first found that I was diagnosed, it was so quickly that I didn't have a whole lot of time to think or process. You just start doing what they tell you to do and hope that everything that you were hearing was the right thing for you. As things processed and I was able to slow down, I found an amazing team.”
After starting in St. Catherine, Anaszewicz connected with doctors out of Munster’s Community Hospital. She then worked with an oncologist named Dr. Shruti Singh from the Northwest Cancer Center.
“She's absolutely amazing, and it was the most wonderful support team," said Anaszewicz. “They followed my progress and were invested in my outcome. If I had to have that experience, they helped it be a good experience.”
Anaszewicz is also the executive director for the Mascot Hall of Fame which is owned by the City of Whiting. While she was nervous to approach her team at work with the unfortunate news of her diagnosis, they were nothing but supportive and encouraging, which meant the world to Anaszewicz.
“When it happened, it was going so quickly that I had to immediately come into work and tell them exactly what was happening,” said Anaszewicz. “The team was amazing, and they worked with me every step of the way.”
What helped her through it all was not allowing her diagnosis to change her. She also had the support of her team at the museum.
“What really got me through it was that I refused to allow this to change me,” said Anaszewicz “This is not going to define who I am, and I continued being who I am. I didn't let it beat me. Having the museum to focus on, and this amazing team of people that would deliver food and then text me and tell me it was there, helped.”
The museum proved to be a difference in her fight against cancer.
“It was a small but mighty village that got me through,” said Anaszewicz “I was surrounded by amazing people. I had something to focus on other than me and myself and what I was going through, and it really did make a big difference.“
Her shared mission with the museum also helped Anaszewicz get through it. Getting to focus on the museum and its mission provided a much needed distraction.
“My mission in life is to make sure that everybody else is happy, and with this museum, we try to provide this amazing experience to others,” said Anaszewicz. “I think being able to provide that service while going through what I was going through actually helped me get through it. I also have an amazing husband that helps a lot.”
One year on from that two week stretch, Anaszewicz has finished up her treatments. Her advice to others who have to battle cancer is to stay positive.
“Cancer is not a death sentence,” said Anaszewicz. “There's so many ways that things can be treated, and being positive really helps.”