Today show star tells of shock after cancer diagnosis
'Today' correspondent Jill Martin is stunned to have been diagnosed with breast cancer just a week after she found out she carried the BRCA gene.
Jill Martin is "in shock" after being diagnosed with breast cancer.
The 'Today' star tested positive for the BRCA gene - which is linked to a higher possibility of developing the disease - just a week ago, and was stunned when she booked in for a preventative mastectomy as a result, only to find the situation was much mnore serious than she realised.
She told People magazine: "I spit into this tube and I mailed it in and honestly I forgot about it, and three weeks later I got a call saying, 'You tested positive [for BCRA gene].'
"I immediately went into producer mode—that's the only mode I know. I got the names of doctors. I set up appointments.
"I said to my husband, 'This isn't going to be the summer we thought it was going to be, but thank goodness that we caught it.' I actually felt lucky."
Jill then went for a routine preoperative MRI scan and was then told she had cancer.
She said: "I went in and I remember she said it's cancer and I remember saying, 'Is it treatable?' And she said, 'Yes, yes, you're going to be okay.'
"I'm not telling you I don't break down and cry at some points, but I still felt—still feel lucky."
The 47-year-old star is taking a leave of absence from 'Today' to undergo a mastectomy and additional treatment.
She said: "I really would rather not have to have chemotherapy, but if that's something I have to deal with, I'll deal with it.
"The scary part of this is the unknown. It's going into a surgery and not knowing if you're going to come out needing chemotherapy or radiation treatment—that is probably the scariest part to me. I work better when I know there's a project, when I know there's a task to be completed."
Later in the year, Jill is also planning to have a preventative hysterectomy as the BRCA gene can also indicate a higher possibility of developing ovarian cancer.
She said: "I'll have to have a hysterectomy in late October or around then in the fall, and then they do the second half of the reconstruction then."
