How Self-Advocacy Saved One Local Mom

In late 2024, while Elizabeth, 36, was breastfeeding her son, she felt a distinct lump in her left breast. Given her age and stage of life, her initial thought was that it was a routine breastfeeding issue. "I started feeling a lump in my left breast and really thought it was related to breastfeeding because that was just the part of my life that I was in," she said. "The nurse just kept saying, 'Just keep massaging it... press on all the things you do for a clogged milk duct.' And it just didn't go away."

Knowing deep down that something wasn't right, she continued pushing for care as the lump refused to clear. By early February, her left breast had swollen to three times its normal size. "It was getting so large and it was so painful, like it was starting to feel like it was going to pop through my skin," she said. "I ended up going to the ER because I was in so much pain."

An emergency ultrasound revealed a massive fluid-filled sac. After clinicians drained the fluid to provide immediate relief, she was referred to breast surgeon Dr. Jessica Limberg at Ascension Saint Thomas Medical Partners Midtown Breast Surgery for specialized care.

At first, the medical team worked under the assumption that it was a galactocele—a benign fluid-filled cyst common during lactation. However, even after weaning her son to try to stop fluid production, the cyst kept rapidly refilling.

Determined to get to the root of the issue, Dr. Limberg scheduled a minor surgical procedure. It was during this procedure that Dr. Limberg discovered a large tumor hidden beneath the fluid sac and immediately sent a tissue sample for biopsy.

The results brought life-altering news: it was triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), a fast-growing and aggressive form of cancer. "My tumor was over 10 centimeters—it was very, very large," she shared. "It was butting up against my nipple in the front of my breast and my breastbone in the back of my body. I went from 'nothing wrong, it may be from breastfeeding' to 'you have stage 3 cancer' basically overnight."

Because her type of breast cancer doesn't respond to standard hormone treatments, she needed strong treatment right away before any further surgery could happen. She was connected with medical oncologist, Dr. Rachel Mitchell at Tennessee Oncology, who worked side by side with Dr. Limberg to map out her care plan.