S1 E7: Experiencing a Breast Cancer Diagnosis at 29 With Victoria Price
In this episode, I speak with Victoria Price @_victoriaprice, an NYC based actor who experienced a double mastectomy after receiving her breast cancer diagnosis at 29.
Summary
In the episode of "On The Outside", host Taylor Rae interviewed actress Victoria Price. Price discussed her experience as a Black woman, survivor of breast cancer, and her involvement in related panels. She also shared her early experiences with racism, which shaped her views on race and society. The importance of healthcare access and self-advocacy was emphasized, particularly for Black women. The conversation included her struggles as an actress post-diagnosis, balancing appearance and self-perception, and how these challenges positively influenced her career.
Key Moments
Introduction, Victoria Price (00:00:06 - 00:12:00)
Victoria discusses her early experiences with racism in elementary school, influencing her perspectives on race and society.Breast Cancer Diagnosis (00:12:00 - 00:32:00)
Victoria shares her story of being diagnosed with breast cancer at 29, emphasizing the importance of healthcare access, self-advocacy, and being in touch with one's body.Acting Career (00:32:30 - 00:37:00)
Victoria reflects on the impact of her breast cancer journey on her confidence and acting career, particularly how it affected her vocal ability and stamina in dance classes, but also how she used these experiences positively to shape her identity and performance.
Transcription
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
Hello there. Welcome back. My name is Taylor Ray and this is another episode of on the outside. Welcome back. I am so happy as always that you are with me today. I am so excited for our conversation. I actually recorded this conversation with Victoria back in October. I can't believe it. You might know that I am in grad school. You probably do know by now and I knew my semester was gonna get super hectic around this time.
And so, you know, me being a type a girly, I thought let's just record all of my episodes with my guests as soon as possible. So this conversation is from way back in 2023. I can't believe that. I mean, it's obviously only the start of 2024 but that's just wild. Nonetheless. I had such a great conversation with Victoria. She was one of my very first guests that I actually got to record with in person.
And I'm so looking forward to bringing you this conversation today in today's episode. I talk with Victoria Price. Victoria was born in the Chicago area but moved around a lot growing up. So she lived in Orange County, California, New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina and Minneapolis. She's currently living in New York City and a working actor.
She's done three national tours, several gigs and appeared as a cheerleader on paw patrol, live on Nickelodeon and Paramount. Plus, she's looking forward to what 2024 brings as an actor. She was one of the creators and hosts of the Black Clots, a podcast that was blurring the lines of blackness activism and The Bachelor in 2021 which surprisingly really resonated with people within Bachelor Nation. She decided to step away from the podcast in late 2022 but is hoping to get back
into podcasting when the time is right, recently, she's spoken on several breast cancer panels, including her first in person panel as an advocate, which was this past summer, the panel was entitled the breasty panel, like, comment, share, finding your voice, finding your people and building community on social media. Let's start out by hearing about a time when Victoria felt like she was an outsider.
Victoria Price
Ok. So when I was thinking about this, I was like, let's bring it back to like one of the first times that I felt like I was an outsider and it was in elementary school. So in the suburbs of Chicago, I, you know, when you're in elementary school and you have your desks and they're all in pods and stuff. And then it's really exciting when your teacher is like, ok, we're going to rearrange, you get to like, sit with different people for, you know, however many months.
So that was that day and we're rearranging our desk. This is maybe second or third grade. So I was very young. we're rearranging our desks and the teacher is like, ok, Victoria, you're going to be over here, next to Brian, blah, blah, blah. And Brian decided to open his mouth and he said, like, yelled like in the whole class, he's like, I don't wanna sit next to her.
She's black and I was like, Brian clearly was not black. But I was like, oh my God, like what? And I had just never like I, you know, 2nd, 3rd grade. So I'm still very young, but like the school that I was at was not, it was actually pretty diverse. And so mostly white, but there were, I had, I do remember having like several black friends that I would play with at recess and also several white friends that I would play with at recess and stuff.
So I was just never like, super aware of the fact that these people were different than me. Obviously, I was like, I know I'm black, I look in the mirror, I'm black, but it was in that moment that I was like, oh my goodness, this little boy does not want to sit next to me because it's something that I didn't do just because of who I am. And I was like, that is crazy. And I think, I mean, it obviously really affected me because I am still talking about it, you know, over 20 years later and I don't
know where Brian's at, but I don't know, I guess I wish him well, but that he should not have said that. So I think that it just was really crazy. Obviously, that was my first experience with racism. And I know that every single person of color can probably remember one of their first experiences when they were othered by a white person and how painful that can be. And so yeah, from that moment on, I was like, ok, well, I guess I'm not talking to Brian because Brian does not like me.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
Let's get into our conversation.
Victoria Price
My name is Victoria Price. I was born in Chicago area because of people in Chicago like to be like, where are you from? Naperville? And I'm like, yes. So I was born in Chicago. I wasn't actually born in Naperville. I was born in a different suburb. But yeah, I went to high school in Chicago area in Naperville. Ok. I moved around a lot as a kid growing up, but my family went back to Chicago when I was in high school.
So that's kind of where I say that I'm from. But a little about me, I'm an actor. First I guess is like what I like to say because I do so many things as we all do. Yeah. You know, just bringing together all the little beautiful intersections of who I am to like how I can bring that to the world is what I'm trying to do. So I'm an actor. So I do mostly musical theater, which is super fun, actor, singer, dancer, also very stressful and chaotic.
Yeah, there's that we chatted a little bit. I used to have a podcast. So that was fun if anyone used to listen to the Black Chil because I do meet people who were like, oh my gosh, that was you. And I'm like, yeah, it was me. That was me. So I did that for like maybe two years, which was really great. So I love being able to come back into the podcast world.
And yeah, I live in New York City and I am a breast cancer survivor. We just finished October which is breast cancer Awareness Month, which was crazy. My second one as a survivor and yeah, I am a proud black woman. My that is a little bit about me.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman, Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
Victoria's story reminded me a lot about a time that I also felt like an outsider when I was around the same age in elementary school when I was in first grade.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
And this is actually the story that I wrote my NYU admissions application essay about when I was in first grade, I was sitting at lunch in the cafeteria and this boy in my class was like, everyone in our class looks like this and points to a piece of white bread and he goes, you look like this, you look burnt and it was like a piece of toast. But I was not in a diverse community.
Truly, everyone in my class was white and I never, I really thought about it because I must have been like 65 or six. And I remember being like, whoa, that's crazy. He is so right. I am burnt and everyone else is white. And that was really crazy to me. That was really shocking to me. I was also always super confused because my mom immigrated from Puerto Rico, my dad immigrated from Dominican Republic and especially Dominicans are like, we're not black, we're Latino.
We are not that those are different things. And thank God for the new generation. All my cousins are like, what's up? Let's look in the mirror family. Let's be so for real, like you're all black. And that made me even more confused because I was like, why is everyone saying I'm black?
I'm Dominican literally just full confusion. But yeah, that first experience when someone tells you this is what your race is or you're different. It's really confusing, shocking like, like makes you feel so many emotions.
Exactly. Sociologists have defined this idea of race making it is a concept called racialization. Racialization is the process through which social meaning is assigned to individuals or groups based on shared characteristics such as phenotype or how you look culture, language or nationality. For example, in short, it is the sociological concept about the making of race.
Race is human invented. It's a shorthand term used to describe and categorize people into various social groups based on character, like skin color, physical features and genetic heredity race. While not a valid biological concept is a real social construction that gives or denies benefits and privileges. The concept of race, as we understand it today evolved alongside the formation of the United States and was deeply connected with the evolution of two other terms.
The term white and the term sl the words race, white and slave were all used by Europeans in the 15 hundreds and they brought these words with them to North America. However, the words didn't have the same meaning that they have today. The term race used infrequently before the 15 hundreds did not have the same connotations. The word white held a different meaning too and transformed over time before the mid 16 hundreds.
There was no evidence that the English, for example, referred to themselves as being quote white people. This concept didn't occur until 1613 when the English society first encountered others and contrasted themselves against them. In short race is deeply based in contrast, whiteness in contrast to blackness or in contrast to indigeneity, I think about this a lot, especially in the context of stories like the one that I just told about my childhood being told that I was
black, being made black when Africans came to the North American continent and across the Caribbean and other parts of the world through the transatlantic slave trade, they were made be black. In contrast to the whiteness of colonizers and oppressors. These individuals were from different ethnic groups and different cultural backgrounds. Oftentimes not even speaking the same language, but blackness was thrust upon them.
Victoria Price
So I came to New York in 2018. And I was here up until 2019 when I went on tour and then after 2019 came 2020. And so I was on tour, everything shut down, broadway, shut down, everything just stopped. And so I, went to Chicago, I went back to Chicago because I was, I was still like so new to New York that I wasn't on a lease. I was just subleasing. So when I booked the tour, that was 10 months, I was like, ok, well, I'm just gonna pack up the bags that I've been living out of for the past year
anyways and then ship other stuff home because I don't have a home in New York. So it kind of worked out when the pandemic hit. I just went back to my mom's and that was that and stayed there for a while. Obviously, my, my diagnosis came during that time, which made me stay in Chicago longer. So I officially moved back to New York in October of last year.
So now I'm a year in, so now I really feel settled. I have a lease, I'm in my apartment. I moved into an apartment because I feel like in New York people live in their apartments, but they don't really move into them. And I'm always like, what is that? You're not going to decorate, make it official. Yeah. So we are in myself and my roommate, we're in our apartment and literally every time people come over, they're like, wow, y'all really moved in.
I'm like, this is where I live. I don't want to come home and be like, there's nothing on the walls and everything's ugly. So, yeah, so I've been back in New York for about a year. So officially I moved out here in 2018, but that year was like, there was a lot going on. I was in and out for work for acting and did another tour before I did my long tour.
And yeah, so now I feel like I've been here a year and I'm like, settled in New York is my home. Probably going to have to get a new license soon. All those things change my voter registration period.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman, Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
I wanted to spend some time talking about something that Victoria briefly mentioned earlier in our conversation, her breast cancer diagnosis that she received at 29 years old, you mentioned in there that when you went back to Chicago in 2020 that was when you got your diagnosis.
Victoria Price
So, so yeah, the pandemic when I went back in 2020 I didn't get my diagnosis until 2022. So I was just kind of like living there for two years, But then 2022 I got my diagnosis and I was 29.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
A breast cancer screening refers to tests and exams used to find the disease in people who don't have any symptoms. The goal of screening tests for breast cancer is to find it early before it causes symptoms like a lump in the breast that can be felt. Early detection means finding and diagnosing the disease earlier than if you'd waited for six to start.
According to the American Cancer Society, 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 or a genetic mutation known to increase the risk of breast cancer such as the BRCA gene and has not had chest or radiation therapy before the age of 30. Interestingly, the American Cancer Society notes that research hasn't been shown that there's a clear benefit of regular physical breast exams
done by either a health professional, which is a clinical breast exam or by women themselves, which is a breast self exam. I thought that was really interesting to note that they have that on their website. That research does not show that there is a clear benefit from that most often when breast cancer is detected, it's because of symptoms such as a lump in the breast.
A woman discovers the symptoms during usual activities most of the time such as bathing or dressing. What they do recommend is that a woman should be familiar with how her breasts normally look and feel. Breast cancer can be screened for, with methods such as mam programs, MRI S or other methods like ultrasounds, biopsies, ct scans, bone scans or pet scans. The recommendation for women who are considered high risk is that they should get a breast MRI and mammogram every year.
Typically starting at age 30 for women between 4044. It's suggested that they start screening with a mammogram every year. If they're at an average risk for women 45 to 54 it's recommended to get mammograms every year and for women 55 and older, they're recommended to switch to a mammogram every other year or they can choose to do them yearly. These are all recommendations again from the American Cancer Society.
I'm 30. My doctor is like, no, you're too young to to get checked. Just do like self exams at home. So what brought you to even find your diagnosis?
Victoria Price
Yeah. So I had moved out of my apartment in Chicago. I know I said I was living with my mom. I ended up moving into like the city, city and not the suburbs and I was there for a year. And I moved out, I literally remember the day it was January 17th, which was MLK Day and I like moved out of my apartment, my mom and I did it all ourselves. And then the next day I was, you know, just like in, in my mom's house and I was holding my water bottle, like, under my arm and I was holding it there and I was like,wow, like, what is that? And so I started, like, feeling there and then I was like, mom, like, do you feel something here? And so she felt it and she was like, yeah, that feels weird. Like you should probably go get that checked. And I was like, ok, so I called made an appointment. and I remember just thinking this is bad, like, and I, I don't know why I felt that way.
I did have something kind of similar in college where I had a lump and I went and got it checked out and they said it was a cyst and I was like, ok, great. So, what am I on its own or? So I thought, I don't know, I thought that too.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
Yeah, I had to get an ultrasound and when I got my ultrasound, they were like, we're training a bunch of new doctors. Can they observe? And I had like, they were all women. I had four women over me while they were doing this ultrasound in my breast.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman, Victoria Price
And I was like, thank you so much for observing.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
It's very wild.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman, Victoria Price
I asked Victoria about her experience receiving her diagnosis.
Victoria Price
I remember going to the doctor and I had my appointment scheduled at like nine or something and I was supposed to start work at 11 and I was like, oh, ok, like I'll just be in and out of this doctor's appointment, whatever. I got there and immediately, you know, I checked, I sign in and stuff and then I go in and they're like, ok, you can go in here and change whatever and it was immediately like cancer.
Like it was like, I'm in a pink thing, pink little robe. All the people around me are like elderly white women and I was like, what, what is going on here? Like I thought I was just getting a little ultrasound like, I don't know, this is interesting to me. So then I'm like freaking out, I'm by myself. But yeah, I didn't end up, I got the ultrasound and then from there it's, you know, which bless their heart.
Like the texts are always so quiet and I'm like, what's going on? Tell me they're over here pressing their little buttons, taking their little pictures and I'm like, what are you seeing? So she's like, OK, I'm gonna go show the doctor and I'm like, baby show me like what? so she goes, you know, goes to the, to the doctor comes back, she's like, OK, I'm gonna do some more imaging, blah, blah, blah, goes come back.
She's like, OK, we're gonna bring you back to the waiting room. We're gonna have you do some mammogram and I'm like, what is going on? Like I'm what a mammogram. So yeah, so I had to go from there do a mammogram. They're like talking to me asking me all these questions in there, go back, do like more ultrasounds, go back, do more. I was there for three hours like I had to be like, listen on slack, listen, I'm gonna be late like I'm at the doctor.
So yeah, I was there for three hours and every time they would like leave to go to the doctor, of course, I'm just sitting in the room by myself like in every single negative thought is going through my brain. because yeah, I was 29. No history of breast cancer in my family. Yeah, from there they didn't tell me I had cancer but they said we're gonna schedule you for some biopsies and all these things blah, blah, blah.
So basically the entire, so that was beginning of February, basically the entire month of February I was at the doctor, like every other day getting tests, getting MRI S biopsies. Ultrasounds, had like to go to the, because I developed a hematoma which was extremely painful. and I didn't get my official diagnosis until the last day of February.
February 28th. She went on to describe the day that she received the news, like that day comes and there's like, nothing in the morning, nothing in the afternoon and then maybe like four pm or something, something pops up and I look at it and once again, I'm not a doctor. So I'm like reading this gibberish and I'm like googling stuff and it like kind of says cancer but it kind of doesn't.
So I'm just like, what is this like, can someone call me? so I called and like, oh yeah, we'll have so and so call you back and I'm like, can someone just tell me what's going on? So anyway, someone called me back and then, yeah, they told me over the phone that I had. So I was diagnosed with DC is, which is ductal carcinoma in C two, which means that the cancer was within my milk ducts, in my breasts.
And so because of that, I guess like, you know, the way the, the, I don't wanna say pros and cons, but because of the cancer being in the milk ducts, it was considered non invasive. It hadn't escaped there yet. So, that was good in the sense of it was not invasive, which so technically, I was diagnosed with cancer stage zero. So I just always say, like, really do advocate for those self checks and things because had I not been paying attention, you know, that cancer could have spread
and could have been invasive and I would have been my, my experience would have been way different. So thankfully, we found it early and still I was really naive to like what all this meant because I'm like, oh, ok, like it's non invasive. Like they're just going to go take out that little part and then I'm gonna like go about my life and I learned quickly that there's literally nothing easy or simple about cancer regardless of having a stage zero diagnosis. So, yeah, I was in for a ride physically, mentally, emotionally and yeah, I just had to, to do it like I had to be like, ok, I have to do these things to save my life.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
I wanted to know how Victoria felt about receiving treatment in Chicago where her family was as opposed to starting treatment, for example, in New York where she was living previously.
Victoria Price
Yeah, initially. So my plan was to, I was moving out of my apartment in Chicago because I was like, ok, I'm going back to New York. Like my plan, I moved out in January. I was like, ok, I'll hopefully be back in New York, like February March. Which, yeah, looking back, I'm thankful that I didn't come back when I did because New York is so go, go, go, go, go, that I pay attention to my body, but I know that I probably wouldn't have been paying as much attention to my body.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman, Victoria Price
if I were here as opposed to, like, when I'm in Chicago and like, all I did every day was like, work and hang out with my mom, Victoria goes on to bring up genetic testing and how that related to her decision making process.
Victoria Price
I was at Edward Hospital in Naperville and they were really, really wonderful and it was close by. So like, I was literally still working through all of this. So I would literally be like, hey, I have an appointment and then just like, drive over and like get whatever needs to be done. But my yeah, my major surgery was in April.
And so I also found out with my diagnosis that I had, I had to do genetic testing because they're like, where did this cancer come from? What's going on? You're 29 you're too young for this. You're like, you live a healthy life, all that stuff. So they did genetic testing found out that I had the BRCA two mutation.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
Genetic testing is available for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer and looks for mutations in the BRCA one and BRCA two genes.
Victoria Price
And that was shocking And then also because of that, that's where like things got more complicated and it wasn't like, oh you can just, you know, get a lumpectomy and get this removed. It was, you know, this makes you more susceptible for developing breast cancer younger, which you did. But also like just because the cancer is in this one spot now, doesn't mean that you couldn't develop cancer in other spots later.
So that's when they suggested highly advise me to do the double mastectomy. which yeah, I was not really prepared for Because then that also leads to other things of like, oh, like if you're gonna have Children, great, but like now you won't be able to breastfeed and all of those things where I was like, literally was not thinking about Children and at all right now, but now I have to like mourn the fact that I won't be able to have that like specific bond with a child, should I decide to
have one? So that is crazy. And then I later found out which initially they told me that, oh, where the cancer is? Like, you'll be able to have a nipple sparing mastectomy, meaning that I would be able to keep my nipples and I was like, ok, great. So I'll do the mastectomy, get the implants and then I will still like look fairly normal. especially as an actor, you know, we're always like changing in dressing rooms and all that stuff. and then found out after that, you know, with where the cancer was and all that, that I wasn't going to be able to keep my nipples. So that was also like dagger to the heart for me. I think I had for some reason the mastectomy was like easier for me to process than like losing my nipples because that was literally more cosmetic of like, oh, I'm not going to look, I'm going to look other, you know, I'm not going to look like a regular person.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
There are several different types of mastectomies. Some examples include total or simple mastectomies. In this method, the entire breast is removed including the nipple, the areola and most of the overlying skin. A radical mastectomy. For example, is when the entire breast is removed, including the nipple and the areola and the overlying skin along with the lymph nodes under the arm and the chest muscles under the breast for many years.
This was actually the standard surgery, but today, it's rarely done. A skin sparing mastectomy is when the breast tissue nipple and areola are removed. But most of the skin over the breast is saved, which could be used during reconstruction, which is usually right after the mastectomy is done. A nipple sparing mastectomy which Victoria and I talk more about is similar to the skin sparing mastectomy.
All the tissue from the breast is removed and usually the ducts going all the way up to the nipple and areola are removed, but the skin of the nipple and the areola are preserved. If no breast cancer cells are found close to the nipple and areola, these areas are saved and reconstruction is done right away.
Victoria Price
And so now I'm like, very, I don't want to say like nipple aware, but like, especially as I take classes in dance classes, some people are like, oh, you know, it's like coming from your nipples, we all have them. And I'm like, let's be a little bit more careful with the wording that we choose because not everyone has them. So yeah, it's crazy.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman, Victoria Price
All the things that I'm realizing we go on to discuss more about breast reconstruction.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
The two main types of breast reconstruction are implant, reconstruction and tissue flap reconstruction. Sometimes the implant and flap procedures are used together to rebuild a breast.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman, Victoria Price
Yeah, I had my double mastectomy in April of 2022 and then I had tissue expanders put in a tissue expander is an empty breast implant.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
Once the tissue expander is in place, the surgeon will fill it with liquid or air over about 6 to 8 weeks, but sometimes much longer as it gets bigger. It stretches the tissue around it to make space for a permanent breast implant.
Victoria Price
They can do a double mastectomy and then straight into reconstruction. So some you know, go to sleep and surgery with their natural breasts and then they wake up and they have either implants or they have, which I, I feel like I always pronounce this word wrong, but I think it's autologous. which means that they take tissue from other parts of their body to create their own breasts, which I didn't know was an option until I found that out.
And I was like, oh, that's amazing. I wasn't a good candidate for that because I just didn't have enough extra tissue. you know, mostly people who are like older or who've had a child or something are better candidates for that. For me, they were like, there's like, it was actually funny. My doctor was like, oh my plastic surgeons, like, do you have tissue?
Like, do you know? And I was like, yeah, I thought she's like stand up and I stood up and she was like, no, no, she was like, you know, have I could barely make one breast and I was like, oh, I mean, I was just, you could take whatever I was like, that's it. I don't need it. But yeah, I realistically I don't have enough extra tissue to do that.
So I had to go with implants. But yeah, so I woke up from my surgery with tissue expanders which are extremely painful. It's literally like the way that I would describe it is, you know, those ball pits that like kids play if you like took all of the air out of the ball and it was flat and then you put it in my chest.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
Victoria goes on to discuss more about her ongoing care, including moving from Chicago back to New York.
Victoria Price
So I ended up having some complications with those and had a really bad infection which once again, I was like in the doctor every other day to get like fluid removed, which was really, really fun. Still in Chicago, still in Chicago. Yeah, so did all that. Finally, my initial reconstruction surgery was scheduled for Halloween of 2022. And then once I was kind of like cleared as like, oh, like the only thing that you have to do now is your reconstruction.
I was like, well, if that's the case, I kind of wanna move. So that's why I decided to start looking into moving back to New York. And then when I said that my, my team was like, well, if you're gonna move, you might as well just move your surgery as well so that you can be near your team during recovery of your reconstruction because otherwise you're gonna have to come back to Chicago and like, stay here for longer.
And so, yeah, so that's what I did. I just transferred my care, which I say just, it wasn't easy at all. Transfer my care to here to the team at MS K Memorial Sloan Kettering.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman, Victoria Price
Cancer center and they've been great and I did my reconstruction in March of this year as Victoria celebrates being cancer free right now. She also shares how this continues to impact her life cancer free, which is good.
Victoria Price
I was, I was basically declared cancer free after my double mastectomy.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman, Victoria Price
They also took lymph nodes, you know, from my armpit and all that to make sure that that was clear which they only took like a small amount because there is the risk of developing lymphoedema breast cancer treatment can cause a build up of lymph fluid.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
This is called lymphoedema. Lymphoedema is arguably the most problematic and dreaded complication of breast cancer treatment.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman, Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
According to breast cancer survivors, lymphoedema may present immediately or even years after treatment in terms of like finding treatment and accessing treatment.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
Did you f like was it accessible for you?
Victoria Price
Yeah, I would say for me, it was and just because I did have good insurance, I did have a job, the job that I still have now. And so I had insurance through that. So that was a huge blessing. because as much as I'm like, yeah, I don't like being a corporate girly or whatever, I'm like, listen, the corporate girlies, we have insurance. So let me go walk on over there.
And so thankfully I had it because had I not had it, I don't know. I mean, I know that there are you know, there's Medicaid and all that, but I'm just glad that I had the insurance that I had. I, I also did have Medicaid at the time, which they took it for me because they said you have a job. So you were taking us back and I said, ok, anyway, so now I only have one insurance.
but yeah, it was that hospital has actually been in my life for a while. My dad, which I didn't like mention this in my intro, but my dad passed away when I was in high school and that he was at that hospital for a little bit before they transferred him to the University of Chicago Hospital. But yeah, so I've always just known of the hospital and it's, it doesn't feel like I don't want to say it's a safe space, but it's like a place where I just felt who was there and I was familiar with it and the team there. I know that they do a great job. I had a voice teacher who actually passed this past December from breast cancer, which is still crazy to me. But she was my high school voice teacher and our connection was always kind of crazy because she also lost her dad in high school and I started taking with her like shortly after I lost my dad. So we bonded over that and then, and then I like get this diagnosis and I was home and so we got to connect over that and sadly, like, I didn't even know that she had progressed to that point and then it was just like she was gone. So that was really, really crazy. I'm really thankful that I got to see her a couple months before. but yeah, so that she went to that hospital as well. So yeah, finding care was, was easier. I will say I did, you know, do a little getting second opinions and things. So I also went to Northwestern Hospital. It's awesome. Yeah.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
Yeah, it was, I feel like advocating, especially black women advocating for themselves when it comes to their health is, I mean, it's something that so many people talk about because a lot of times black women are not believed when it comes to their health. Obviously, it's a little bit different when you're like your doctor seeing the images, but even all the details you spoke about like how you wanted to go about reconstruction, how you wanted to go about all those things.
I feel like it's so challenging when you're in it to even think about getting a second opinion and like looking at all of your options. I can imagine just being like, yeah, whatever you say, that's what I'm going to do because I'm freaking out in this.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman, Victoria Price
So that's awesome that you were able to do that.
Victoria Price
Yeah, I will say it was mostly my mom who wanted to get the second opinion because I was, I was, yes, I was very much like we just need to get it out. Like, what are you talking about? This is what it is like, let's just go. And she was like, no, let's figure it out, blah, blah, blah, you know, we'll see it and of course, the second opinion said the same thing. But yeah, no, I think it is good to definitely get second opinions.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman, Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
We finished our conversation and talking about how Victoria's experience with breast cancer has impacted her life as an actor, being an actor is already, I like to say trash.
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
I lived my life as an actor from when I was six years old until I don't know, maybe last year no longer pursuing that afterlife. But being an actor so hard with comparing yourself being judged on your appearance, being criticized and critiqued for so many things and also doing it to yourself.
Maybe even if the casting directors aren't saying that to you, but like you say it to yourself alongside this but also just like separately from it, how has this impacted your career as an actor or you're just like experience within yourself?
Victoria Price
Yeah, I had to take a lot of time and remind myself that I was still healing and that my body went through so much trauma and like, no, I wasn't gonna get in a dance class and slay because like, I can't breathe. So I'm like, I just, like, can't, I don't have the endurance that I used to have, you know, I just didn't have, I hadn't even like pandemic wise.
Like I was, I just wasn't doing it as much so already, like, I was out of practice from the pandemic and then on top of that, my body went through all this trauma. So getting back into it, there was so much insecurity. There was so much and even at that point, it was still all like self tapes, you know, I was just taping from home. I wasn't even in person.
So feeling like, oh cancer took this and this for me in terms of my body. But did it take my confidence? Did it, did it affect my voice all of that? And so I think I tried to pretend like it didn't? But I think that it did. I mean, I know that it did. I know that it did and I had a lesson with I have an amazing vocal coach who I adore. But she recommended me to basically go to her vocal coach one time.
So I went to him and he was really, he was just really great in the sense of he was like, you're doing all the right things. And like your voice sounds great. Like I don't hear anything that would be like, oh, like this is vocal trauma or like, there's anything going on with your vocal chords. but he's like, is there a world? And he's like, I'm not trying to pry, but of course, we talked about my diagnosis and all that and he's like, is there a possibility that when you go into the room, you're like carrying some of what you went through with you into the room? And I was like, I don't, I never really thought about it that way, but I think the answer is yes, I think that every time I would go into a room or record a tape, I felt more like I had to prove something to myself of like I can do this. I went through all this stuff and I, I can do this like I can do this.
And I think the phrase that I've been like holding on to over the past couple months is nothing to prove only to share. And because like, yeah, I went through all that shit and like that was the absolute worst, but like, I can't bring that. Like I'm only doing myself a disservice if I like, use that as my crutch and say like, well, I went through this like, I can't be as good as I was before I went this.
It's like I went through all of this and look who I am now and like, look what I can bring now and look at all of the other like lived life experiences that I have that have broken me down that I'm able to like use and build myself back up again. So, yeah, it was an adjustment. I obviously was struggling in my dance classes to like remember choreography to just like get my stamina back to get my leg up.
Like all these things. I was just like, I was struggling vocally. I was like, let me get back into these lessons because I don't know, I, I didn't know like what cancer had done to my voice. And thankfully now I'm just now I feel like, and now we're essentially a year and a half pretty much from my double mastectomy. Now. I feel like I'm finally at a place where I have a fuller grasp of like what I went through and how it can shape who I am now and it's no longer like, I'm not like mad about it as much anymore. I'm more just like, ok, I had to do that and like this is just going to make me so much better for like what's gonna happen in the future. So yeah, I don't, I don't wish to repeat it, but I'm thankful that I am here and that I'm able to like take all that and bring it into the room and to share that with casting and whoever else gets to witness it. Yeah,
Taylor Rae Almonte-Roman
as always I am so grateful for every single guest that comes on this show for their vulnerability and their willingness to just be so open and honest because I think we all absolutely learned something. Some of the things that Victoria shared I had no idea about. For example, her experience with tissue expanders, I didn't even know tissue expanders were an element of treatment and breast reconstruction until I actually saw her posting about it in real time on social media when it was happening. But I actually didn't know at all that that could be a part of breast reconstruction. My understanding was that you got implants either when you were getting the mastectomy. I don't, I don't really know. I think a lot of my information was coming from maybe, maybe just like, I don't know media or like hearing people talk. I'm not really sure that I knew anyone that had gone through that process.
So I'm really grateful that Victoria shared more. And of course, for every episode, I get to do some really interesting research and continue to educate myself and hopefully also help you guys learn something new. I'm so thankful that Victoria took the time to talk with me and I hope that you guys also really got a lot out of our conversation.
You can follow Victoria Price at underscore Victoria price as always a full transcription of this episode along with all of my citations can be found on my website. All those links are available in the show notes. See you out there.
References
Bibliography
American Cancer Society. n.d. “ACS Breast Cancer Screening Guidelines.” Www.cancer.org. Accessed February 28, 2024. https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/breast-cancer/screening-tests-and-early-detection/american-cancer-society-recommendations-for-the-early-detection-of-breast-cancer.html#:~:text=Women.
———. n.d. “Breast Reconstruction Options | Types of Breast Reconstruction.” Www.cancer.org. Accessed February 28, 2024. https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/breast-cancer/reconstruction-surgery/breast-reconstruction-options.html#:~:text=The.
CDC. 2020. “Genetic Testing for Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer | CDC.” Www.cdc.gov. March 31, 2020. https://www.cdc.gov/genomics/disease/breast_ovarian_cancer/testing.htm.
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Lett, Elle, Emmanuella Asabor, Sourik Beltrán, Ashley Michelle Cannon, and Onyebuchi A. Arah. 2022. “Conceptualizing, Contextualizing, and Operationalizing Race in Quantitative Health Sciences Research.” The Annals of Family Medicine 20 (2): 157–63. https://doi.org/10.1370/afm.2792.
National Cancer Institute. 2023. “Breast Cancer Screening - NCI.” Www.cancer.gov. November 24, 2023. https://www.cancer.gov/types/breast/patient/breast-screening-pdq#:~:text=Breast.
Roediger, David. 2019. “Historical Foundations of Race.” National Museum of African American History and Culture. Smithsonian. October 11, 2019. https://nmaahc.si.edu/learn/talking-about-race/topics/historical-foundations-race.
