My name is Bryna Freeman and I’m a massage therapist and wellness enthusiast living and working in Lititz, PA. I’ve been a self-employed massage therapist and have been running my business for 17 years, and love helping my clients. I am also a travel advisor on the side, as one of my passions is traveling. Outside of work, I enjoy yoga, working out, dancing, and prioritizing both physical and mental well-being.  I’ve raised my 19-year-old daughter on my own since her birth, and I am proud to see her thriving as a college freshman. Next month I’m celebrating my 59th birthday and my second clear scan by treating myself to a holistic retreat in Mexico. 

I found Teal Diva through a Facebook page for women with vaginal cancer. Someone posted about the upcoming retreat they were having and I applied and was one of 20 very fortunate women to be selected for the retreat in Saluda, NC. This retreat was so incredibly therapeutic for me, and it was the first time I got to talk with another woman who had vaginal cancer. Up until that point, I felt so alone in my diagnosis because it’s so rare and I didn’t know anyone who had vaginal cancer. 

Before getting diagnosed with vaginal cancer, I thought I was perfectly healthy. About 6 months before getting diagnosed, I started having a few symptoms, like abdominal discomfort, weight loss, and discharge. I went to my family doctor twice, about these symptoms, but they brushed them off as other things. I even had a pap test at that time and it came back negative, however, during that test, the doctor completely missed the golf ball-sized tumor because the speculum was apparently pushing it out of the way. One morning I woke up and when I went to the bathroom, there was an enormous amount of blood in the toilet. I immediately knew something was wrong, so I drove myself to urgent care, they sent me to the emergency room, (all this right in the middle of covid), and since I wasn’t still bleeding, all they did was a blood test, told me everything looked fine and that my period “must be trying to come back” and they sent me home. I didn’t think much more about it, but fortunately, the exact same thing happened one week later. This time I called the gynecologist and they told me to come in immediately. That was the first time I heard the word cancer, and that I had a very large tumor in my vagina. From there I was sent to the cancer center and the tests began. I had stage 3 vaginal cancer with metastasis to inguinal lymph nodes. That began my 2 ½ year journey of multiple rounds of chemotherapy, radiation, brachytherapy, and lots of alternative treatments on the side, like intravenous mistletoe and vitamin C, and a drastic change to my diet. I finished my last round of chemotherapy this past May and I am currently receiving infusions every 6 weeks of the immunotherapy, Keytruda.

One of the most challenging things about my diagnosis was that my daughter had just turned 16, and I have been the sole provider for us since she was born. The first thing I said to my oncology doctor when she told me I had cancer was “You need to keep me alive until my daughter graduates high school”. After receiving bad news over and over again, I had to come to terms with the fact that I may not be here to raise my daughter. 

On top of coming to terms with my diagnosis, I also had a business to run. I worked through all of my cancer treatments, giving massages to my clients when I felt absolutely awful, but I had no other choice. 
When women ask me how I knew I had cancer, I always share my story, because if my family doctor had been more thorough, I might have gotten diagnosed earlier, and not then spent 2 more years chasing cancer through my lymphatic system as it continued to spread.  I tell women that if they feel something isn’t right in their body, keep pursuing it, get a second opinion, and trust your instincts. 

When I was told I had vaginal cancer, I didn’t even know that was a type of cancer. I asked the doctor, “Do you mean cervical, uterine, or ovarian?” and that was the first time I learned about vaginal cancer. For some reason, GYN cancers come with a different stigma than other cancers, like breast cancer. I was embarrassed to even tell people what type of cancer I had, (I have no idea why), so when I posted on my Facebook page that I had cancer, I only mentioned that it was a very rare cancer in women. It wasn’t until months later that I realized I needed to be a voice for women and tell my story even if it helps even just one other woman. I hope that by telling our stories and speaking out, without shame, we can remove the stigma of GYN cancers, and work to get as much attention as breast cancer does. 

I’m looking forward to a healthy, happy, and cancer-free year, as the past 3 years have been incredibly stressful. I feel like I can finally take a breath and work at getting my body healthy again, make plans to travel more, and enjoy my friends and family. I often say that in a weird way, I have gratitude for my cancer journey, because it has made me realize what’s truly important in life, and to not stress the small stuff. I will never take a moment of my beautiful life for granted.