Kristianna

Kristianna is married to her amazing husband and has 2 daughters. She loves her job as a pediatric nurse. She’s played softball for 28 years and currently coaches youth softball.

In January 2024 at age 30, she found a lump during a self-exam. She was diagnosed with Stage 3 invasive ductal carcinoma triple-negative. She had a double mastectomy after chemotherapy to shrink the tumor. All told, she had 6 months of chemo, 35 radiation treatments, and 12 immunotherapies. She is grateful that she never went to a treatment appointment alone.

Her hope for breast reconstruction was to feel a little more normal again after being flat for a year and a half.

Kristianna also shares, “Even though Dr. Shayda Mirhaidari did an amazing job with my DIEP flap, some days my scars are hard to get past. Other days, they remind me of how far I’ve come.”

While she was recovering from her DIEP flap, her husband recognized she needed to get to the hospital. She was ultimately life-flighted and admitted to the ICU for septic shock and adrenal crisis. She is eternally grateful to her husband for making that call and to Dr. Mirhaidari and her team for the role they played in her healing.

By walking the Pink Runway, she hopes to be an inspiration for other women who are going through a similar journey. And to say thank you to God, her husband, daughters, and all her family, friends, nurses, and doctors who were there for her every step of the way.

Having an amazing family, friends, and medical staff, along with God and a strong faith, made all the difference. “God is great,” she says. “I am alive, and I’m a survivor!”