At 36, Kristen Cusumano Cristiano assumed her severe back pain was tied to motherhood and recovery after childbirth. But her mom wouldn’t let it go, encouraging her to get checked—and that persistence led the New York native to push for an MRI, ultimately uncovering her diagnosis of BRCA1-positive Stage 4 Triple Negative Breast Cancer.
Triple negative breast cancer means that the cancer is not being fueled by any of the three main types of receptor: estrogen, progesterone, nor the Her2 protein. Treatment is usually chemotherapy, using different drug options depending on the patient. However, since this type of cancer can be aggressive, advanced cases may also include clinical trials with newer treatments like immunotherapy or targeted therapies.
Read MoreView this post on Instagram
“After Simone was born, I decided to stop primarily feeding breast milk and began integrating formula while continuing multiple pumping sessions and freezing milk for her. Like many new mothers, I blamed exhaustion and hormones for almost everything happening in my body,” she explains on her GoFundMe, which has neared it’s $70,000 goal.
“When the lump returned, growing to nearly the size of a golf ball, uncomfortable, and impossible to ignore, I convinced myself it had to be mastitis or some postpartum complication. Milk could still be expressed. The swelling would occasionally decrease. Nothing felt entirely clear.”
She continued, “At the same time, I began experiencing severe back pain unlike anything I had ever known. It felt as though a plank of wood or a metal rod had been lodged into the left side of my back. I have lived with spinal problems since childhood. At 12 years old, I was diagnosed with spondylolisthesis and spondylolysis.
“Pain was familiar to me. I spent years being molded for various custom braces, undergoing stimulation treatments, and attending more physical therapy sessions than I care to admit, all while learning how to normalize discomfort in order to keep functioning.”
At first, she tried to rationalize the discomfort instead of stressing about it, assuming it could be normal postpartum healing, stress, or exhaustion from not sleeping enough, or even just the result of overexerting herself after pregnancy.
Kristen followed up with her spine specialist, who carefully examined new X-rays but found no significant structural changes. Hoping for relief, she underwent a trigger point injection to target the persistent localized or referred pain. Yet within two weeks, the pain returned with even greater intensity, leaving her struggling to cope and describing it as “unbearable.”
“Something in me knew this was different. I personally took it upon myself to advocate for my own body and immediately requested an MRI extending from my neck to my tailbone. That decision changed everything,” Kristen explained.
“Within minutes of reviewing the scan, the radiologist raised high suspicion for multiple myeloma or metastatic cancer. The MRI revealed lesions throughout nearly every vertebra in my spine.”
My MRI appointment was the last one of the night. After reading the radiologist’s notes outlining the high suspicions, I arrived home and told my husband Anthony, “I think I have cancer.” That night, after discovering both establishments operated 24/7, I filled out intake forms for both New York Cancer & Blood Specialists and Memorial Sloan Kettering in an attempt to stay ahead of what I feared was coming.
Two days later, I sat beside my husband in an oncologist’s office and heard the words no young mother imagines hearing: “There is a 90% chance you have Stage 4 breast cancer.” After additional testing, that likelihood was raised to 98%.
A biopsy then confirmed it.
In April 2026, I was officially diagnosed with BRCA1-positive Stage 4 Triple Negative Breast Cancer — an aggressive cancer that had already spread to my brain, skull, spinal fluid, spine, adrenal gland, liver, and other parts of my body.
Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.
