Published Jul 14, 2026

Sports Reporter Jamie Edmonds, 42, To Ring The Bell After 16 Rounds of Chemotherapy For Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: ‘I Think I’m Going to Beat It’

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Understanding Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

Respected Detroit sports broadcaster Jamie Edmonds, 42, is getting ready to celebrate a major milestone as she prepares to ring the bell after completing 16 rounds of chemotherapy in her battle with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).
Next, she’ll undergo a double mastectomy and immunotherapy through the spring of 2027.
“Triple-negative” means the cancer is not fueled by any of the three main types of receptors: estrogen, progesterone, or the HER2 protein. Because of this, the cancer won’t respond to certain common therapies.
In addition to surgery and radiation, chemotherapy is a mainstay of treatment for early-stage triple-negative breast cancer. Different chemotherapy combinations may be used to treat this aggressive form of cancer.
In some cases, immunotherapy — which harnesses the body’s immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells — will be used for triple-negative breast cancer.
New York City Presbyterian Pastor Tom Evans previously spoke with SurvivorNet about how faith can help people cope with the complex emotions that come with cancer.
“It’s important to reach out in a simple prayer to God, even if you’ve never prayed before, you don’t know what to say, a heartfelt plea, ‘God, help me, be with me,'” Pastor Evans told SurvivorNet.

Respected Detroit sports broadcaster Jamie Edmonds, 42, is preparing to ring the bell after completing 16 chemotherapy treatments over 20 weeks in her fight against triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC)—a cancer not fueled by any of the three main types of receptors: estrogen, progesterone, or the HER2 protein.

“Triple-negative breast cancer has a high risk of recurrence, and can come back as stage 4, which is why it is treated so aggressively,” her doctor, Duke medical oncologist Dr. Rani Bansal, said.

Edmonds—a mom of one to her daughter Olivia, wife to her beloved husband Ryan Dempsey, and host of the “Angels Along the Way” podcast—received her breast cancer diagnosis back in February. But now, she’s ready to celebrate the end of her aggressive chemo treatment, The Detroit News reports.

“I remember after I was diagnosed in February, it was cold, it was dreary, it was foggy – like Gotham City foggy. It felt like the whole world was upside down,” Edmonds captioned a recent Instagram post, featuring a photo of herself, with her husband and daughter.

“I said to myself, if I can get to summer, I will be almost done with treatment and I will feel differently. Well… I am here. We are here. TWO more chemo treatments to go. It’s summer. It feels like things are looking up. One day at a time.”

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In an interview with The Detroit News, Edmonds shared more about her experience after being diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer, despite having no known family history of the disease. With chemotherapy soon to be behind her, she is preparing for a double mastectomy scheduled for August 12 and will continue immunotherapy through the spring of 2027.

Despite the obstacles she’s now facing on her breast cancer journey, she told The Detroit News, “I think I’m gonna beat it now, by the way.”

Edmonds has leaned on both her loved ones and her faith throughout her cancer journey, finding strength and guidance through her relationship with Father Andrew Kowalczyk of Saint Clare of Montefalco Parish in Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan.

Looking back on what led to her diagnosis, Edmonds explained on her podcast, “So, I’m watching TV with my daughter in January, in the little playroom we have, and I had an itch sort of near my armpit, under my armpit area. And so, I go to scratch, and that’s when I felt like a marble underneath my skin.”

She described the lump as “very defined” and “very hard,” prompting her to worry.

Edmonds continued, “I immediately think something’s wrong because I had never felt anything like that before. And it was very, very scary. And my husband’s like, ‘Well, you better call your doctor.'”

After discussing the lump with two of her friends, Edmonds made an appointment with her doctor. While the doctor initially thought it could be a cyst, she recommended a mammogram and ultrasound to ensure a more accurate diagnosis. Biopsies ultimately revealed she had cancer.

Dpeaking to The Detroit News about how she’s ready to ring the bell, the journalist’s father James Edmonds said, “It’s an accomplishment. It’s a milestone. We know that things aren’t over. This is the first step.

“Now we get to the second step, which is surgery, and then the third step, which might be reconstruction. It’s just one step at a time, and nobody’s rushing it. We’re just praying every night and being grateful for at least getting to this point.”

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In an open letter written on WJR, a commercial AM radio station in Detroit, Edmonds wrote, “In February, I got the call that changed my life: ‘Your biopsy has come back. It is positive for breast cancer.’ CANCER?!? This cannot be real life. I’m only 42-years-old; I have a lot of life left to live!

“After the initial shock subsided, I entered some very dark and scary times. Would I be around to see my young daughter grow up? Would the doctors be able to cure me? Why did this happen in the first place? I don’t have any family history, and I don’t have the BRCA gene.”

She continued, “How did I get out of that ‘dark period’ as I call it? I leaned on my faith and the love of my family and friends. I was also surprised by the support of the breast cancer community. I never knew it, but there is a network of women who band together to help the newest members of the club. Strangers called me and texted me. We cried together on the phone.

“I also watched a lot of stories on social media of women who had the same diagnosis as me. Hearing and watching those women’s stories of survival helped me to have hope. If they can do it, I can do it. If telling my story can help others, then I’m happy to share and I plan to do so.”

Edmonds has also noted that her cancer was initially diagnosed to be stage 2, but further scans revealed it was stage 3 as the cancer had spread to her lymph nodes.

Throughout her treatment and recovery, she also continued navigating the responsibilities of motherhood, while choosing to stay engaged in her career, attend work events, and take steps to adjust to the changes brought on by treatment, including going wig shopping.

On June 18, she chose to share a video compilation of her hair journey throughout treatment.

She captioned the post, “I miss my hair. I miss the carefree woman who styled that hair. My hair started coming out week five of chemo. It came out slow at first, then in clumps. That was the hardest part; it was so emotional.

“BUT, once @vinataylor shaved it, I felt better. And Samantha my wig helps too. None of this easy, but it’s nice to have people around you who’ve been through it to support you. … My hair will come back and so will I!”

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Understanding Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

Triple-negative breast cancer is one of the most aggressive forms of the disease and makes up for approximately 20 percent of all breast cancers. The treatment approach varies from patient to patient and may include a combination of different treatments.

Early-stage triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) treatments may use a combination of chemotherapy drugs.

Understanding Triple Negative Breast Cancer

For example, a CMF regimen is an abbreviation for combining chemotherapy drugs cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, and fluorouracil. AC stands for doxorubicin (Adriamycin) with cyclophosphamide, and ACT just indicates that a taxane drug is added to the regimen. Likewise, TC is an abbreviation for a regimen of Taxotere and cyclophosphamide.

In 2021, the FDA approved the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab for the treatment of early-stage triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). Pembrolizumab (Keytruda) is already used to treat other cancers, including melanoma and non-small cell lung cancer. Doctors heralded the FDA’s approval of pembrolizumab as a potentially paradigm-shifting advancement in breast cancer treatment.

For patients with stage 2 or 3 TNBC, adding the immune-boosting medication pembrolizumab to combination chemotherapy before surgery increases chances of living free of breast cancer, explains oncologist Dr. Sylvia Adams, director of the Breast Cancer Center at NYU Langone’s Perlmutter Cancer Center.

She was one of several researchers involved with the pembrolizumab trials. “It changes the standard of care and should be discussed with all patients diagnosed with stage 2-3 TNBC,” she adds. “Yes, it’s a game-changer, though there is much more to be learned.”

Until recently, researchers hadn’t had much success using the therapy to fight breast cancer. That’s changing now. The IMpassion130 trial showed for the first time that a combination of immunotherapy and chemotherapy had a significant effect in treating metastatic triple negative breast cancer. Triple negative breast cancer is an extremely aggressive form of the disease, so this discovery is important.

Dr. Sylvia Adams explains, “The question now becomes, is it only triple negative breast cancer that can benefit from immunotherapy, or are there other subtypes as well?

“If a tumor has the PD-L1 protein in it, that means there’s already an inflammatory response, that the patient’s immune system already recognized the tumor and was starting to work against it. The benefit of identifying such a strong biomarker in the triple negative subset will allow us to actually test for the presence and responsiveness to immunotherapy in other subtypes of breast cancer.”

Is My Cancer Really Triple-Negative?

Dr. Heather McArthur, Clinical Director of the Breast Cancer Program at Simmons Cancer Center at UT Southwestern Medical Center, has spoken with SurvivorNet on this relevant topic.

You might be told you have triple-negative breast cancer, that means that your cancer is not being fueled by any of the three main types of receptors: estrogen, progesterone nor the HER2 protein. But now you could be categorized as HER2 low instead of HER2 negative.

Breast cancer cells with higher-than-normal levels of HER2 are called HER2-positive, those with low levels of HER2 are (or were) called HER2 negative. Recently, however, researchers have looked to further expand this definition to include patients that have a minimal amount of HER2 expression but do not meet the classic definition for HER2-positive tumors. This group has been called HER2 “low” and is very important as it represents almost 50% of all patients with breast cancer.

This excitement stems from the fact that HER2-low breast cancers are targetable with a recently new FDA-approved Enhertu (Fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki). It appears that Enhertu is extremely effective for appropriate patients and can greatly improve their quality of life and help them live longer.

Therefore, it is exceedingly important to discuss with your physician about your HER2 status.

The Importance of Breast Cancer Screening

Screening for breast cancer is normally done through a mammogram, which looks for lumps in the breast tissue and signs of cancer.

While there is some disagreement about the exact age a woman should start getting mammograms, doctors generally agree it should happen in their 40s.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) suggests women should begin annual mammogram screenings for breast cancer at age 45 if they are at average risk for breast cancer.

However, an independent panel of experts called the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) now says that women should start getting mammograms every other year at the age of 40, suggesting that this lowered the age for breast cancer screening could save 19% more lives.

WATCH: Mammograms are still the best tool for detecting breast cancer.

The ACS also advises:

Women aged 40-44 have the option to start screening with a mammogram every year
Women aged 55 and older can switch to a mammogram every other year
Women aged 55 and older could also choose to continue yearly mammograms

For screening purposes, a woman is considered to be at average risk if she doesn’t have a personal history of breast cancer, a strong family history of breast cancer, a genetic mutation known to increase risk of breast cancer such as a BRCA gene mutation or a medical history including chest radiation therapy before the age of 30.

Experiencing menstruation at an early age (before 12) or having dense breasts can also put you into a high-risk category. If you are at a higher risk for developing breast cancer, you should begin screening earlier.

Don’t delay speaking with your doctor to make sure you are staying on top of your breast health.

Why Faith Offers Cancer Patients Hope

A study published in “Cancer” includes data that found “69% of cancer patients reported praying for their health” compared to “only 45% of the general U.S. population.”

Cancer psychologist Dr. Andrew Kneier helped co-author “Coping with Cancer: Ten Steps toward Emotional Well-Being.” He also co-authored a column published by Stanford Medicine with Rabbi Jeffery M. Silberman, director of spiritual care at Danbury Hospital in Connecticut.

The two add more context to the impact faith has on cancer patients.

“A person’s faith or spirituality provides a means for coping with illness and reaching a deeper kind of inner healing,” Kneier and Silberman said.

“Coping means different things to different people: it can involve finding answers to the questions that illness raises, it can mean seeking comfort for the fears and pain that illness brings, and it can mean learning how to find a sense of direction at a time of illness. Religious teachings can help a person cope in all of these dimensions,” Kneier and Silberman continued.

WATCH: Three-time cancer survivor shares how her faith helped her during cancer.

New York City Presbyterian Pastor Tom Evans tells SurvivorNet about the importance of finding ways to cope with the complex web of feelings you may be experiencing after a challenging health diagnosis, such as cancer.

“It’s important to reach out in a simple prayer to God, even if you’ve never prayed before, you don’t know what to say, a heartfelt plea, ‘God, help me, be with me,’” Pastor Evans told SurvivorNet.

“You can reach out to God, and you can reach out to people, your friends and family, and say, ‘I can’t do this on my own. I need you.’ “It’s in that willingness to be open and to receive that we can find something deeper that we never would’ve encountered without this hardship,” Evans added.