Former E! News Host Kristina Guerrero Shares Breast Cancer Journey
Routine Screening Leads to Early Diagnosis
After a routine mammogram in late 2022, Kristina Guerrero received a call for follow-up tests because doctors thought they spotted a cyst in her breast. She did not have a family history of breast cancer, so she suspected the mass was scar tissue from a previous surgery.
“I never anticipated that breast cancer was necessarily going to be a part of my story,” the former E! News host tells TODAY.com. “It didn’t run in my family. I didn’t know anybody with breast cancer.”
Weeks passed as Guerrero, now 44, waited for her results, and that delay gave her a false sense that she was healthy. But then she received a call from her doctor.
“The reason it had taken so long was because it was a very rare form of breast cancer called angiosarcoma,” she explains. “They had to send it out for second and third and fourth opinions before they finally recognized that this was a very rare, aggressive cancer.”
Breast Cancer in Hispanic Women
While Hispanic and Latina women are about 25% less likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer than non-Hispanic white women, they are more likely to receive an aggressive breast cancer diagnosis at a younger age, according to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. What’s more, they often receive late-stage diagnoses.
The reason for these disparities are complicated. Doctors offer BRCA mutation screen less frequently for Hispanic women, and these women are also less likely to undergo regular mammogram screenings due to lack of insurance, access to doctors and preventative care, the Breast Cancer Research Foundation notes.
Documenting Her Experience
With the help of her husband, Gibby Cevallos, Guerrero made a short film documenting her experience with breast cancer called “Walking Through Molasses.”
“I was going through my treatment, and I felt isolated. One of my comfort places is as a journalist. It’s telling stories,” she says. “I recorded a lot of my testimonials and things I was going through as I was going through them. And I’m so grateful that I did.”
Rewatching her videos helped her remember forgotten feelings.
“It’s very raw,” she says. “It’s a 15-minute short on my experience of breast cancer told through this weird space I was in at the time.”
Conclusion
Guerrero is now cancer-free and visits her doctor every six months for scans to make sure the cancer hasn’t returned. To her, it’s important to share her story to raise awareness of breast cancer for women of color.
“For my women of color, my Latinas … it’s proven over and over again that we don’t go in for early detection that we aren’t aware of the risks of breast cancer to our bodies and so we ignore them,” Guerrero says.
She also wants everyone to understand the important of screening.
“I just hope that people will realize that I really didn’t think this was going to happen to me and then it did,” Guerrero says. “I want people to acknowledge that it can also happen to them. But they can go on and live, if they go and get their mammograms.”
FAQs
Q: What is angiosarcoma?
A: Angiosarcoma is a rare and aggressive form of breast cancer that develops in the cells that line the blood or lymph vessels.
Q: Why is it important for Hispanic and Latina women to get regular mammogram screenings?
A: Hispanic and Latina women are more likely to receive an aggressive breast cancer diagnosis at a younger age and often receive late-stage diagnoses. Regular mammogram screenings can help detect breast cancer early, when it is more treatable.
Q: What can people do to raise awareness of breast cancer for women of color?
A: People can share their own stories and experiences with breast cancer, support organizations that provide breast cancer screenings and treatment to women of color, and advocate for increased access to healthcare and preventative care for Hispanic and Latina women.
