Monica

Monica is married to David, and together they have four children, one granddaughter, and two dogs. They look forward to 2024 as their family grows with a summer wedding and another grandchild coming. She has worked for Summit County for 27 years in Employee Benefits as a benefits administrator.  In her spare time she loves to read, garden, walk/hike, and paddle a dragon boat!  She never says no to a good cup of coffee or a nice glass of red wine.

Monica was diagnosed with Stage 0 ductal cancer in situ after finding a lump in her right breasts. She actually had cancer in both breasts and underwent a bilateral mastectomy with implants. In 2019 she found a lump close to her incision which was a recurrence of cancer.

Dr. Cody performed her reconstructive surgery, although Monica says she didn’t make it easy for him! She ruptured an expander after tripping over her dog, and they needed to restart the process, and had to work around the recurrence and radiation. But she says that with each surgery, she never once worried because Dr. Cody would say “we’ll take care of it.” And each time he did.

Monica advises other women facing a breast cancer to just keep breathing. Fear grows, but you need to breathe your way through each step of the journey.  Do what YOU want to do. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, trust the process, and call Dr. Cody at Crystal Plastics – he will take good care of you!

Monica chooses to walk the Pink Runway to celebrate survivorship and breast cancer advocacy. She believes it is important to always focus on the positive outcomes, especially after a cancer diagnosis. Walking the runway is just one way to show that women can walk away from the reconstructive surgery of their choice feeling confident, comfortable, and attractive!