Mom, 65, and daughter, 43, who were BOTH diagnosed with breast cancer just eight months apart celebrate joint remission news - after each underwent a double mastectomy

  • Amanda Nelson, 43, tested positive for a BRCA2 mutation in 2017, significantly increasing her chances of getting breast cancer
  • She had planned to get a preventative double mastectomy when her mother, Terry Wulf, 65, was diagnosed with a rare form of breast cancer in 2018 
  • Amanda put her own mastectomy plans on hold to care for her mother during treatment, which included a mastectomy and chemotherapy
  • But after a routine MRI found a lump in her breast in 2019, Amanda was also diagnosed with breast cancer
  • She, too, underwent a double mastectomy and reconstruction 
  • Both Nebraska women are now in remission and have urged other women to monitor their breast health

By Carly Stern For Dailymail.com

Published: | Updated:

A mother and daughter who were both diagnosed with breast cancer within months of each other battled the disease together — and are now both gratefully in remission. 

Mother Terry Wulf, 65, was diagnosed first in 2018, after doctors found that she had a rare form of breast cancer.

While caring for her mother through her treatment in their, Blair, Nebraska home, daughter Amanda Nelson, 43, went for a routine MRI and discovered that she, too, had breast cancer and would have to fight it alongside her mom.

A mother and daughter who were both diagnosed with breast cancer within months of each other battled the disease together — and are now both gratefully in remission

A mother and daughter who were both diagnosed with breast cancer within months of each other battled the disease together — and are now both gratefully in remission

Amanda Nelson, 43, tested positive for a BRCA2 mutation in 2017, significantly increasing her chances of getting breast cancer

Amanda Nelson, 43, tested positive for a BRCA2 mutation in 2017, significantly increasing her chances of getting breast cancer

Amanda wasn't all that surprised to get breast cancer given an extensive family history, so she was vigilant about getting annual mammograms and breast MRIs  

'I knew without a doubt, just from that breast cancer history, that the risk was very high for me,' she told KETV . 

'There really never was a question of if I would get breast cancer, it was just always a matter of when is it going to happen.' 

In 2017, she tested positive for a BRCA2 mutation, which meant she had about a 69 per cent chance of developing breast cancer in her lifetime.

In a bid to cut down those odds, Amanda planned to undergo a prophylactic double mastectomy, removing her breasts and getting implants to reduce the amount of breast tissue that could become cancerous.

Angelina Jolie famously underwent the surgery in 2013.

She had planned to get a preventative double mastectomy when her mother, Terry Wulf, 65, was diagnosed with a rare form of breast cancer in 2018

She had planned to get a preventative double mastectomy when her mother, Terry Wulf, 65, was diagnosed with a rare form of breast cancer in 2018

Amanda put her own mastectomy plans on hold to care for her mother during treatment, which included a mastectomy and chemotherapy

Amanda put her own mastectomy plans on hold to care for her mother during treatment, which included a mastectomy and chemotherapy

But after a routine MRI found a lump in her breast in 2019, Amanda was also diagnosed with breast cancer. She, too, underwent a double mastectomy and reconstruction

But after a routine MRI found a lump in her breast in 2019, Amanda was also diagnosed with breast cancer. She, too, underwent a double mastectomy and reconstruction

But she was forced to put those plans on hold when, in 2018, her mother got the 'scary' diagnosis of triple-negative breast cancer, which is difficult to treat. She later learned that she also had the mutation.

Terry was the one who was soon getting a double mastectomy and breast reconstruction, which she followed up with chemotherapy and other medications. 

'That was probably so hard on my body,' Terry said. 'That is when I truly thought that I probably was not going to live any longer, that that was probably going to kill me.'

Amanda was taking care of her mother eight months later in 2019 when she went for a routine MRI — and doctors found a lump. A biopsy revealed it was cancer.

Terry has gone through several rounds of treatment, and things took a dramatic turn with Terry got a second diagnosis, this time with cancer in her fallopian tubes

Terry has gone through several rounds of treatment, and things took a dramatic turn with Terry got a second diagnosis, this time with cancer in her fallopian tubes

'I knew without a doubt, just from that breast cancer history, that the risk was very high for me,' Amanda said
'I just want to think that, I made it through it, and now I'm just going to live my life,' Terry said

'I just want to think that, I made it through it, and now I'm just going to live my life,' Terry (left) said

Warning: Both Nebraska women are now in remission and have urged others to monitor their breast health

Warning: Both Nebraska women are now in remission and have urged others to monitor their breast health

'I just blanked out,' Amanda told the Methodist Health System upon hearing her diagnosis. 'The whole world just stopped for a minute.' 

Now Amanda's hand was forced, and she finally underwent the mastectomy and reconstructive surgery she'd planned earlier.

Amanda and Terry hit another dramatic turn with Terry got a second diagnosis, this time with cancer in her fallopian tubes.

But together, the pair have fought and are now both in remission, and have urged other women to monitor their breast health.

'I just want to think that, I made it through it, and now I'm just going to live my life,' Terry said. 

Nebraska

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