“Aloha, my name is Alohilani Lucas, and I am a breast cancer survivor.
Those words carry more meaning than I could ever fully explain. They represent fear, strength, tears, uncertainty, faith, motherhood, and a fight I never imagined I would have to face.
At the time I was diagnosed, I was already navigating life as a single mom, doing everything I could to provide for my family while trying to better our future. I had made the decision to go back to college because I wanted more for myself and for my children. I had goals. I had dreams. I was trying to build a better life.
Then, suddenly, I heard the words that changed everything: breast cancer.
I admit, I was scared.
It felt unreal, almost like I was standing outside of my own body listening to someone else’s story. Cancer wasn’t something I expected, especially because no one in my family had ever had breast cancer. I was also the youngest in my family to be diagnosed with cancer. I remember wondering, Why me? Why now?
There were so many things running through my mind, but one thought was stronger than all the others: my children needed their mom.
Being a mother meant I didn’t have the luxury of giving up. Even on the days when I was exhausted, afraid, overwhelmed, or unsure of what tomorrow would bring, I had a reason to keep fighting. My children became an even greater source of strength for me.
Cancer challenged me physically, mentally, and emotionally. There were moments when I didn’t feel strong at all. But I learned something important during that journey: strength doesn’t always look like standing tall and fearless.
Sometimes strength is crying and still getting up the next morning.
Sometimes strength is admitting you’re scared and walking into another appointment anyway.
Sometimes strength is allowing yourself to be vulnerable while refusing to surrender.
And sometimes strength is simply telling yourself, I am going to make it through today.
I did not choose breast cancer, but I could choose how I faced it.
I chose to fight.
I chose to believe that my story wasn’t going to end with a diagnosis.
I chose to keep dreaming about my future, my education, my children, and the woman I still wanted to become.
Today, when I say I am a breast cancer survivor, I don’t say it because the journey was easy. I say it because I know exactly what it took to get here.
Cancer became a chapter of my story, but I refused to let it become the whole story.
I am still a mother.
I am still a woman with dreams.
I am still working toward my goals.
I am still becoming the person I was meant to be.
And most importantly, I am still here.
If sharing my story can reach even one woman who has just received her diagnosis and is sitting there terrified of what comes next, I want her to know this:
You are allowed to be scared. You are allowed to cry. You are allowed to have days when you don’t feel strong. But please don’t give up on yourself or the life waiting for you beyond this moment.
A diagnosis can change your life, but it does not get to decide your worth, your purpose, or how your story ends.
I once wondered why this happened to me. Today, I look at my journey differently. I see a woman who walked through one of the hardest seasons of her life and came out with a deeper appreciation for every sunrise, every hug from her children, every opportunity, and every dream she still has the chance to chase.
I am Alohilani Lucas.
I am a single mother.
I am a woman who still has dreams to accomplish.
I am a fighter.
I am a survivor.
Breast cancer is part of my story, but it will never define me. What defines me is the strength I found when I thought I had none left, the love that gave me something worth fighting for, and the courage to keep moving forward.
My story isn’t over.
I’m still here. I’m still fighting for my dreams. And I’m still becoming stronger with every chapter.”
