Deysi Barzallo

The Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators (AONN+) is the largest national specialty organization dedicated to improving patient care and quality of life by defining, enhancing, and promoting the role of oncology nurse and patient navigators.

Please don’t ask— about my prognosis, if I’m terminal, what stage I am in, have you gotten second or third opinions, have you tried this treatment? I feel hollow, invisible, as cancer wins your attention. Don’t drain my precious energy telling me what I should do next. It is not your body, not your journey, not your life. This is between me, my chosen tribe, and God.

Being diagnosed with triple-positive breast cancer at the age of 41 undoubtedly brought me closer to the person I was born to be. My self-evolution began on May 1, 2017, when I heard my doctor say, “They found cancer cells in the tissue.” On that unforgettable afternoon, life as I knew it changed forever. As I ascended to a different plane, one between life and death, I began to evaluate my existence with a different perspective.