Washington Twp. woman triumphs in third breast cancer bout

• Branchburg native Darlene Hoffman, 55, battled breast cancer in 2001 and then its recurrence in 2007 and again in 2015
• Having been exposed to traditional radiation in 2001, Hoffman opted for proton therapy, a less invasive form of radiation therapy, to treat her breast cancer recurrence in 2015
• “Darlene sees life as a gift and is incredibly humble, gracious, and giving.” -- Brian Chon, M.D., medical director of ProCure Proton Therapy Center in Somerset
• “Cancer can be fought and the fight can be won, and I hope that my experience can help someone feel a little less scared and overwhelmed in dealing with their own diagnosis.” -- three-time breast cancer survivor Darlene Hoffman

When Darlene Hoffman was first diagnosed with breast cancer in late 2001, she didn’t hesitate to take action.

A busy executive assistant at Johnson & Johnson and a mom to two young children, the Branchburg native who currently lives in Washington Township was relieved that her condition “had been caught early — not even Stage 1” and proceeded to have a lumpectomy followed by radiation.

Six years later, “something recurred in my right breast and appeared suspicious in my left,” she said of 2007 test results that ultimately confirmed a second diagnosis of breast cancer, for which she elected a bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction and chemotherapy.

Hoffman proceeded to move on with her life until spring 2015, when she began noticing small wounds developing around her scars. Assuming them to be wear-and-tear issues related to one of her implants, she was shocked to learn that her breast cancer had returned once again, this time within her chest wall and accompanied by an invasion of cancer cells into her lymphatic system.

But while the stakes were higher and her treatment options more limited because of her past medical history, Hoffman once again summoned a courage and inner resolve that’s led to her third triumph over the disease.

“Do I worry about a recurrence? Yes,” the now-55-year-old admitted. “But will I let that worry overtake me? Absolutely not. I’ll never give up.”

Stoic soldier

Looking back over the past 15 years, Hoffman remembers her state of mind at each difficult turn.

“When I received the initial diagnosis in 2001, I was scared to death,” she recalled, “but once I got involved with my care team at Hunterdon Regional Cancer Center in Flemington, it took a lot of the fear away. I was a working mom, and the fact that it was detected early was encouraging.”

The second diagnosis in 2007, though, “floored” her.

“Having made it past the critical five-year mark, I thought I was golden,” she said, “but all of a sudden, wham! But like the first diagnosis, it had been caught fairly early and I thought, ‘I can do this.’ I had chemo, but it wasn’t as bad as I’d expected. I lost my hair and experienced fatigue, but I wasn’t sick, so I did what I had to do and endured treatment for seven months.”

Hoffman’s third diagnosis, however, presented her and her medical team with an entirely new set of challenges.

“I’d finished a course of chemo and had been marked and mapped for traditional radiation at Hunterdon Regional Cancer Center, but my radiation oncologist there decided that it wouldn’t be best for me to go that route physically or curatively based on the previous radiation I’d had,” she said.

He instead referred her to Somerset-based ProCure Proton Therapy Center for proton therapy, a less-invasive and more targeted approach to radiation that limits the damage done to healthy tissue surrounding the tumor.

“Darlene’s third bout with breast cancer in 2015 was complicated,” said Brian Chon, M.D., medical director of ProCure Proton Therapy Center. “She’d undergone a third surgery to remove the area, but her surgeons were concerned about the possibility of microscopic cells remaining present, for which they recommended more chemo and asked us to re-irradiate her right chest wall area,” he said, noting the difficulty of that approach.

“Even though her first course of radiation had occurred nearly 15 years earlier, bodies don’t forget radiation and there’s a limit to the amount of radiation one can be exposed to without consequences. Her team didn’t want to cause damage to her lungs, heart or bones and, in our role as a regional resource which has forged great partnerships with area medical centers on behalf of difficult cases, they referred Darlene to us to minimize her risk. In light of the high doses of radiation she’d previously received, proton therapy was a great alternative for her.”

Developed and commercialized 20 to 30 years ago, proton therapy has proved effective in the treatment of lung, breast, prostate, head, neck and other cancers located within deep tissue and/or near critical organs that need to be spared from radiation.

One of only two proton therapy centers in New Jersey and among less than two dozen nationwide, ProCure has treated over 2,000 patients since opening in 2012 and welcomed Darlene in March. She underwent 30 20- to 30-minute sessions over the course of six weeks.

“She finished in April and recovered wonderfully from the treatments with no major side effects,” Chon said. “The treatments represented a minimal interruption in her life and afforded her the highest quality of life during the process.”

Love, compassion and hope

Hoffman agreed.

“Believe it or not, I considered myself lucky when I was diagnosed in 2015 in that I knew what to expect and how to deal with it. It was a terrible situation, but I felt that if I went into it with a gloom-and-doom attitude, that’s what I’d get out of it,” said Hoffman, who by this time had two beloved grandchildren in the mix.

“I have moments where I wonder when the next bomb will drop, but that’s no way to live your life. Cancer is horrible and a curse, but in so many ways, it’s also a gift because it can bring out the best in many people — for example, perfect strangers helping me in the supermarket when I’ve been as bald as a bowling ball. Cancer brings out love, compassion and hope. Without that, how can anyone go on?”

“Darlene did everything by the book, but hers was a very locally stubborn and persistent cancer,” conceded Chon, who noted that Darlene’s case defied the odds in many ways based on the fact that the chances of a local recurrence of breast cancer following a lumpectomy are only 15 percent and the chances of a local recurrence after a bilateral mastectomy are just 5 percent.

Despite the “bad hand” he said she was unfortunately dealt, “we’re very optimistic about beating this and there’s no evidence of recurrence in the breast or chest wall at this time,” Chon said, adding that “Darlene is one of the wisest people I know. Having been through this a number of times, she understands that no one is promised a tomorrow. Darlene sees life as a gift and is incredibly humble, gracious and giving.”

Today, despite some achy joints and sodium retention caused by her medication, “I feel great and am probably one of the healthiest cancer patients out there,” an upbeat Hoffman said. “I feel grateful for my kids and grandkids as well as for the network of support I’ve had both at home and on the job.”

Regarding her message to others struggling with a similar battle, Hoffman encourages them to take care of themselves, trust in their care team, accept help when it’s offered, and have faith.

“Every cancer and patient is different, but you can do it,” she said. “It can be fought and the fight can be won, and I hope that by sharing my experience, I can help someone feel a little less scared and overwhelmed in dealing with their own diagnosis.”

As for her own future?

“I just want to be able to stick around, maybe for a great-grandchild or two, and see them through some great life experiences,” she said with a smile.

That’s Chon’s hope for Hoffman, as well.

“I look forward to Darlene growing old,” he said, “and knowing that she’s surrounded by her grandchildren and enjoying those experiences and memories.”

ProCure Proton Therapy is at 103 Cedar Grove Lane in the Somerset section of Franklin and can be reached at 877-967-7628 or by visiting www.procure.com/new-jersey-explore.