Healing Through Cancer and Sobriety

When Priscilla Garcia was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer at age 33, she knew she had a challenging treatment journey ahead. She also knew she needed to be at her best, physically and emotionally, to get through it. That meant finally coming to terms with substance use disorder.

“Your life literally flashes before your eyes with that diagnosis,” the mother of three says. “I wanted to make sure I was 100 percent all in.”

Garcia was struggling with an opioid dependence after receiving a prescription to help her manage pain from chronic ovarian cysts several years ago.

“Before my cancer treatment started, I had time to reflect on what really matters,” she says. “I knew that sobriety went hand in hand with being healthy.” Garcia shares how her support system, including her family and her care team at AIS Cancer Center, helped her with both health needs: cancer treatment, and sobriety.

Overcoming addiction

Before beginning her cancer treatment, Garcia turned to nurse navigator Stephanie Teixeira, RN, and social worker Peyton Struwe. Nurse navigators and social workers provide education and help patients manage appointments and understand their options. “They have offered so many resources that I am still exploring,” Garcia says. “I signed up for the very first recovery program that they referred me to.”

The program includes support groups, weekly one-on-one counseling sessions, and medication to suppress cravings. Garcia recently celebrated two years of sobriety.

“I tell my family that cancer saved my life,” she says. “Had I not been in that circumstance, I would not have been able to make the change to become sober.”

Strength to keep going

Garcia’s care team — which included hematologist and oncologist Neeraj Agnihotri, MD, and breast surgeon Francesca Hoehne, MD —determined that her treatment should start with surgical removal of the cancer in her breast and underarm, followed by chemotherapy and radiation.

She says her dad has been an irreplaceable support throughout her journey. “In the worst parts of chemotherapy and the hardest moments of sobriety, he was right there with me,” she says. “He has been my rock.”

Moving on

Two years after becoming sober and beginning cancer treatment, Garcia says she is hopeful for the future. “I look forward to starting over with my boys— they get to have a healthy mom,” she says of her sons, who are 8, 11, and 17. “I’m grateful for this second chance at life.”

Garcia hopes to inspire other people experiencing cancer and addiction, too — she shared her journey at AIS Cancer Center’s VIPink event earlier this month and hopes she can show others that “if I could keep the faith in such a dark time, other people with cancer can do the same.”

Watch Priscilla's testimony video