16-Year Breast Cancer Survivor Found Solace Through Work, Motherhood

As Ruth Osterberg nears the 16-year anniversary of her diagnosis of breast cancer, she reflects on the inner strength, outer ring of support and sheer will that helped her survive not just a life-threatening disease but an entire year of change and challenge.

"On the surface, it appeared that my life was very normal. But underneath, emotionally, it was very devastating,” said Osterberg, a West Bloomfield resident and Andover High School graduate, who gave birth to daughter Nicole just nine months before she was diagnosed Oct. 31, 1995, with Stage One breast cancer.

“Being normal and being in a routine was very important to me. Going to work made me feel normal and got me out with people. Otherwise, I think I’m sure I would’ve wallowed in self-pity and sorrow.”

Osterberg had a lumpectomy — a noninvasive, common, surgical procedure to remove the tumor — in December 1995.  Weeks of chemotherapy and radiation followed, until May 1996.

She was able to continue work throughout that time as a secretary in the law firm of Pedersen, Keenan, King, Wachsberg and Andrzejak, of Commerce. That helped her feel powerful and self-sufficient, she said.

Although side effects of radiation and chemotherapy can be devastating for some patients, she said with a chuckle that she was certainly most affected by losing her shoulder-length, brown hair, which has since grown back to its original length and color. 

“A lot of times, people tell you that radiation knocks you out and makes you tired; it didn’t happen to me and I felt fortunate for that … I didn’t have to take time off work,” Osterberg said. “I had a great support group. My hairdresser took me to pick out the wig that I wore for eight months and my girlfriend came with me to get my hair cut when it was falling out.” 

In addition to the new challenge of motherhood, Osterberg also had a divorce with her first husband in the same year. She said that the mountain of tasks involved in raising a baby kept her focused on her goal of surviving.

Now, Nicole is a 16-year-old student at Walled Lake Central High School.

Before her own diagnosis, Osterberg lived with the knowledge that her own mother had died of breast cancer. Through treatment, Osterberg learned she has a caretaker gene which produces a protein, making her members of her family potentially more susceptible to the disease.

“It was like the other shoe finally dropped. I was always concerned that I would get it because my mom had it,” Osterberg said. “I kept thinking, 'My mom died from this. This is what’s going to happen to me. I have a little baby, I’m alone, I’m divorced.' 

"My daughter kept me normal," she added. "She kept me focused.” 

Osterberg has used her trials as an example to the rest of her large family, including three brothers, one sister, and many neices and nephews, urging them to test themselves.

She said she is truly appreciative of the array of cancer treatment options offered by area hospitals, and describes herself as an advocate of support groups such as Gilda's Club, Reach to Recovery, and Look Good...Feel Better.

“I definitely think that breast cancer is a big issue,” Osterberg said. “I think it’s important for women to know their options, and we’re fortunate in Detroit to have great hospitals nearby. It’s important to have a relationship with a surgeon, so that if you are diagnosed, you know what’ll happen. It’s about being proactive.”

As Oct. 31 draws nearer, bringing her closer to both the anniversary of her own diagnosis as well as the end of national Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Osterberg said that she doesn't feel weighed down. Although she admits that her survival has made her feel "a bit more emotionally self-aware," she feels like she lives in the moment — a necessity with a busy, teenage daughter, she said.

However, she also considers the future. She's recently remarried, to a man named Gary whom she met years ago when they were students at Central Michigan University. She's adopted a puppy, now 1 1/2 years old, a golden retriever named Casey.

Finally, she looks forward to retirement – in a sense.

“I hate to think of myself as old enough to think about retirement,” Osterberg said. “I remember at the very end (of treatment), I just wanted to have someone tell me that I was going to be one of the people that was saying, ‘I’m a 20 year survivor.’ That’s what I wanted to know.”