Vanessa Da Costa was just 29 years old when she was referred to the Michèle S. Darling Women’s Imaging and Assessment Centre at Trillium Health Partners’ Credit Valley Hospital. She had been experiencing breast pain and, with a history of breast cancer in her family, she braced herself for the worst. She was officially diagnosed with breast cancer in May 2021 and embarked on a treatment plan involving eight rounds of chemotherapy and 30 rounds of radiation.
Vanessa was scared, but her health care team kept her positive and informed every step of the way.
“My surgeon Dr. Alana Hosein and my oncologist Dr. Mala Bahl were both so positive from the very beginning of my journey. I can’t thank them enough for saving my life,” she says.
Today, Vanessa’s cancer is in remission and she is happily living in the GTA with her husband and their dog, spending her free time hanging out with family and friends and going for long drives. At 31, she says she is living one day at a time but is excited for what the future holds.
“You have to always keep your faith and hope for the best. I’m currently expecting my first child, which is a miracle.”