Submitted Phot
By Aila Boyd
Nicole Hylton, a Fincastle native, was diagnosed with stage 2 invasive ductal carcinoma late last month at the age of 29.
During a visit to her gynecologist, a knot was found in Hylton’s breast during a manual breast exam. At first, doctors thought that she had a fibroadenoma, a benign breast tumor, but a biopsy revealed that it was far more serious. “I’m a rare breast cancer patient, because it normally happens to older women whose cancer is hormonal-related. Mine isn’t hormonal-related. My cancer won’t react to hormones. I have to have chemo. I have to have it removed,” she explained.
Her first round of chemotherapy was administered on August 9, which she said she handled quite well. A few days after her first treatment she regained her energy and returned to her nursing job at Carilion Clinic in Daleville. “The first couple days after chemo were really, really hard, but I have so much support from family and friends. They’ve made it a lot easier on me,” she said.
In total, she is expected to undergo eight rounds of chemotherapy. The treatment is administered to her every two weeks. Her doctors currently have plans for her to undergo a double mastectomy.
Unfortunately, Hylton, a James River High School graduate, isn’t the only one in her family who has battled cancer. Her husband Erastus Hylton had stage 4 testicular cancer and an active tumor on his pancreas when he was in high school.
“His prognosis was not very good at all,” Hylton said about her husband. “Because it was so far staged along, they weren’t sure if he would be able to overcome it or not. It was a miracle that he was able to pull through.”
Now, Nicole and Erastus, who celebrated their five-year anniversary earlier this month, have two children. Although it wasn’t easy, after six months of trying to become pregnant, they received the news that their now 3-year-old daughter was on the way.
“My husband’s experience definitely gives me a lot of hope— knowing that he survived his cancer and knowing that mine isn’t nearly as bad as his was has given me a lot of hope,” she said. “We have faith that the Lord will get us through this.”
Although she has insurance, Hylton said that the cost of her post-chemotherapy Neulasta shot is exorbitant, costing $17,000 per treatment. Throughout the course of her treatment she will be required to take eight Neulasta shots, which will cost a total of $136,000.
In order to help pay for Hylton’s treatment, a spaghetti dinner and fundraiser have been planned for Saturday, September 7 from 5-8 p.m. at Fincastle UMC Family Life Center.
“The dinner is to help me with bills because I won’t be able to work very much,” she said.
The dinner, which costs $8 for adults and $5 for children 10 and under, will include spaghetti, salad, garlic toast, and a drink. Individual desserts will be available for $2 or less and whole homemade baked goods will also be available for purchase.
Raffles for donated items will take place throughout the dinner. Raffle tickets will cost $1 for one ticket, $5 for six tickets, and $15 for 20 tickets. A Henry Golden Boy .22 LR level action rifle will also be raffled off. Tickets cost $5 and can be purchased by contacting Kelsey Hylton at 529-6427 or Michael Hylton at 529-1953.
