Maranda LaRussa knew that lumps in one’s breast could be a sign of cancer. But never had she heard about itchy breasts possibly being a sign.
So, when her breasts started to itch in the summer of 2018, she thought it was odd. Then in October 2018, she experienced pain when she touched a lump in her breast. Immediately, she contacted her doctor.
She went in for an ultrasound. Test results showed it was cancer. A few weeks later, she learned she had Stage 3A breast cancer. She felt like if she had known about itchy breasts, she could have gotten her breasts checked earlier.
“But I ‘m glad that I noticed my symptoms, I was vigilant, and I moved as soon as I could,” she said.
Maranda LaRussa (Photo by Taneisha Tucker Photography)
When Maranda first told doctors and friends about her itchy breasts and the painful lump, they said, “That’s not a normal sign.”
“They said, ‘Lumps don’t have pain.’ I was like, ‘This one does,’ ” she recalled. “A lot of the doctors and ultrasound techs said, ‘It is probably not cancer. It’s going to be a cyst.’ ”
Hearing all of that frustrated Maranda because not everyone is the same when it comes to symptoms. She wanted people to really hear her.
At the time, Maranda was 40, and she felt like maybe she was being dismissed because of her age.
“It was just like, ‘Listen to me! I know something is not right. It’s my body. You don’t know what’s going on,’ ” she said. “That was my frustration. And it happens to a lot of people.”
As she fought to be heard, he also fought for her life.
Maranda had a double mastectomy around Thanksgiving 2018. In January 2019, she started 16 treatments of chemo, which was followed by 30 rounds of radiation. And to prepare for reconstructive surgery and the installation of implants, expanders were placed in her chest in 2019.
Following the reconstructive surgery, Maranda had a hard time adjusting to the implants. Several years later, she had them removed. She then opted for a DIEP flap reconstruction, which uses one’s own tissues and blood supply. She said it’s as close to natural as one can get.
The potstickers from Surin West and Surin 280 in Birmingham are vegetables and pork placed in a dumpling. They come with a spicy curry sauce. (Photo by Chanda Temple)
Throughout her treatments and surgeries, she could only taste certain things such as Startburst jelly beans. Purple was her favorite. When it came to savory foods, she liked the spicy curry sauce that comes with the potstickers at Surin 280 and Surin West.
“It was kind of like a special thing,” she said of the sauce. “You get kind of down when you are doing (treatments). It gave me something to look forward to.”
The ribeye from Longhorn Steakhouse. (Photo from the Longhorn website)
And to keep her those special vibes flowing during her recovery, her husband brought Maranda a medium well ribeye steak, a salad and mashed potatoes from Longhorn Steakhouse for Valentine’s Day 2019.
“You don’t really feel normal during all of this, and that did make me feel normal,” she said.
Today, Maranda is the events and development coordinator for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation of Alabama. As the organization prepares to celebrate 30 years of existence in 2026, she wants to remind people to trust their gut when they feel something is amiss with their body.
“If something does not feel right to you, no matter what you are told is typical or normal, you need to get it checked out,” she said. “You know your body.”
“Do your due diligence and you homework on who your doctor is,” she said. “Make sure they want to treat you as a person and not just as statistic or a number.”
NOTE: In America, one in eight women will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer during their lifetime.In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I will be profiling one female breast cancer survivor each day in October 2025. The stories will also highlight a food from a Birmingham, AL restaurant or food vendor they liked at some point during their breast cancer journey or today. The series is called “SurviveHer at the Table: Food. Faith. Fight.”
Each story posted this month is the opinion of the survivor, with a goal to increase awareness about early detection and treatment for breast cancer. Readers should consult with their physician for medical and health advice and their nutritionist for healthy eating tips. Links to area resources will be shared in future posts this month.
