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'I believe in the power of prayer'
57-year-old breast cancer patient finds support through God
Sandra Bishop
Sandra Bishop, cancer patient, wears pink to show support for breast cancer awareness month. - photo by Caitlin Jett

COVINGTON, Ga. - “When I found out yesterday that I wouldn’t know what my treatment would be today, it’s the first day I cried since I found out I had cancer," 57-year-old Sandra Bishop, who tried holding back tears of disappointment. 

"I cried because I was so disappointed," she said. "I’m ready to get the treatment started. It doesn’t matter which treatment it is. I’m ready to get it started.”

Since Sept. 19, the day Bishop found out she was cancer-free, she has been waiting to find out if she would be treated with chemotherapy or radiation. Her treatment will be determined based on her test results, which will show the likelihood of her developing cancer again.

“If my test results are a certain number then I’ll have to have chemo, but if it’s lower than that, I’ll have to have radiation," she said. "[The doctor] is thinking I’ll just have to have radiation, which is a good thing. If I have to have chemo, I can get through it. I’ll be okay.”

Bishop found out she had breast cancer Aug. 29, one day before she was set to enjoy her Labor Day staycation. The doctor diagnosed her with invasive lobular, the type of cancer that begins in the breast lobes, and lobular carcinoma in situ, an abnormal cell growth that increases the likelihood of invasive breast cancer. 

"I was in shock, and I'm still in shock," she said. "I truly didn't believe anything was wrong with me."

The hardest part of her diagnosis was telling her family, who she is very close to. 

Bishop stated that telling her family of her diagnosis was "harder than going through surgery."

“We all accepted it, and we’re true believers in Jesus," she said. "We all went to church together, and I was anointed with oil for healing.”

She added, "They are wholeheartedly supporting me."

Bishop stated that nobody in her immediate family had been diagnosed with cancer; however, she did have a 33-year-old great niece, on her sister's side, that was diagnosed with cancer a day prior to her diagnosis. The doctors determined that the relationship was too distant to have any correlation. 

On Sept. 16, Bishop had a lumpectomy, a type of surgery to remove cancer or abnormal tissues from the breast, to remove five lymph nodes. She found out she was cancer-free three days later.

“I believe in the power of prayer," she said. "Everybody I know, even people I don’t even know, are praying for me. I appreciate it.”

Bishop planned to know her treatment plan by Oct. 21.