Erica Broussard has a new lease on life.
A cancer diagnosis rocked the then 28-year old Destrehan woman in May of last year, suddenly rendering everything else in her life secondary to the goal of beating the disease and staying alive—for herself, for her husband, Emile and for their infant son.
But after six months of chemotherapy, there is great news to report: Broussard’s cancer is in remission as of Nov. 16 and her life back on track.
While she still must make periodic trips to MD Anderson Cancer Center in Texas for follow-up checkups, Broussard said she’s elated to be able to be herself again.
“It’s exciting,” she said. “It’s definitely great news. It’s not easy yet … given this type of cancer, there is a very significant chance it could come back, so we’re still making trips back and forth to Texas. It’s still a worry. I’ll be lying awake wondering, ‘is it back? Is it growing?’“But I’ve learned from all of this to live each day to the absolute fullest, for sure.”
A nurse, Broussard was just about a month into a new job when she started experiencing serious abdominal cramping. Though the pain was agonizing, she said she first avoided seeking treatment until her mother convinced her to see a doctor.
“I didn’t want to take time away after just starting (the job),” Broussard said. “I went to the emergency room by myself … I really didn’t think it was anything serious.”
But once she got there, scans showed otherwise: specifically, a baseball-sized tumor protruding through her abdominal wall. After a biopsy, she was scheduled for surgery. But when she awoke from the procedure, she realized quickly something was wrong.
“I thought it was gone, but they told me they were only able to remove a small piece,” she said. “Nobody really had answers.”
Doctors at first told her it was colon cancer, then changed that prognosis, saying the mass was not in the colon and that they were uncertain about the case.
“That was the scariest part,” she said. “The uncertainty and the inability to find what was wrong.”
That prompted Emile to schedule an appointment at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. She went in for major surgery after her doctor determined she had ovarian cancer. It was also determined she should undergo a hysterectomy, given the unknown circumstances that could arise in surgery and the unsure status of the health of her ovaries.
The Broussards finally had their answer, but it came as a tough pill to swallow nonetheless. Erica officially had cancer. She’d be unable to give birth again. And she had a major fight looming.
After her surgery, she began chemotherapy treatments, which she said rendered her unable to do much on her own.
“It was a mental challenge as much as physical,” she said. “I had to get over my pride and let others help me. My child just turned one, and essentially we needed someone to babysit both of us. I wasn’t able to be a mom. That was the toughest part.”
But as she underwent treatment and recovery, she learned she was surrounded by a great deal of love. Her friend and co-worker, Margaux Prejean, started a GoFundMe page to help the family with medical expenses. Donations came to a total of $7,020, providing a major lift financially; medical bills were not only draining, but frequent trips to Houston were adding up. Broussard said the family made 12 trips to Houston between May and December.
The help made a major difference, she said
“It was really incredible, the support from everyone,” she said. “We were very hesitant at first when Margaux started the page. By no means did we ever expect that kind of response from everyone. And it wasn’t just the page. Someone showed up every night with dinner. I mean, to know so many people support you and what you’re going through, it meant the world.”
She said she never, ever saw a cancer diagnosis coming at the age of 28, and believes that was a part of why people had such empathy for what she was going through.
“For a lot of people, you see it and know, ‘wow, that could have been me.’”
When the diagnosis came, she said she immediately went into “fight mode,” where little else seemed to matter.
“Now, I’m just concerned with spending every day with my son,” she said.”
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