Belinda Momon has been making music her whole life, encouraging elementary students to build good character, serving as band director, playing percussion and traveling with her church choir. There’s little that can stop this lifelong teacher and Douglas resident.
When Belinda was diagnosed with breast cancer, she knew she could fight it with the same passion she always applied to music. And her victory over the disease became her most important composition.
It all began as a pact between two sisters. After losing their mother to cancer, Belinda and her sister vowed to get mammograms every year. In 2017, everything looked normal until Belinda found a lump.
It was a Friday evening, and Belinda wasted no time and saw her physician.
At Wellstar Douglas Medical Center's Imaging Center, the new mammogram confirmed she had cancer, underscoring the importance of paying attention to your body and discussing any changes with your doctor.
“My sister battled with breast cancer twice. She said ‘if I can get through this, you can get through this,’” Belinda remembers. “I felt encouraged.”
Personal care at every step
Belinda, who had just wrapped up her 30th year teaching, now had to draw up the same courage she had always instilled in her students.
“There’s so much life that I still need to live,” she said. “I’m not allowing breast cancer to stop me.”
As Belinda started her fight against cancer, she met a nurse navigator at Wellstar Douglas Medical Center who survived breast cancer herself. The nurse helped her make connections and appointments with cancer specialists. At Wellstar, personal connection is at the core of every physician, nurse and team member, extending beyond the walls of our hospitals.
Belinda began chemotherapy treatment to shrink the tumor before surgery. She went to Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center for a mastectomy — a full removal of the breast tissue and lymph nodes. Here, all her previous exams were readily available thanks to Wellstar’s electronic medical record, allowing for a seamless transition between facilities.
In the months following her surgery, Belinda underwent a daily schedule of radiation on the Wellstar Cobb Medical Center campus in Austell. The treatment drained her energy, but not her determination to live life to the fullest.
