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Valerie Buchanan, a dynamic 32-year-old interior designer from Montreal, died in February after a long battle with breast cancer, which doctors initially told her was unlikely to spread because of her age. She spent more than a year searching for answers about a lump in her breast, only to be repeatedly reassured that it was harmless. No imaging was done.
It wasn't until she saw a private clinic that she finally got the bad news: stage 3 triple-negative breast cancer, an aggressive and fast-growing type. Within a few months, it had reached stage 4.
Her husband, Chris Schepers, is in shock.
I keep asking myself why anyone, but selfishly, why her?. She was a beautiful person. She was extremely driven, talented, and positive. What really breaks me is our son won’t know the truly remarkable woman she was
Chris Scheepers, Buchanan’s husband
Lived life to the fullest, even while battling
Even after several surgeries, chemotherapy, and radiation, Buchanan would not tell anyone about her diagnosis. In four years, she had married, given birth to a son, grown her business, and enjoyed planning themed Halloween parties, her creativity was evident even in the midst of adversity.
Schepers said, remembering the Halloween that she carefully coordinated with a circus theme for her child. "I would do it all over again, just to see her smile."
“I remember spending two hours at Home Depot alone just trying to figure out what would be the best materials for it. I spent six hours putting together such a basic thing, but it all came together, and she was so happy. I would do it all over again if I had to. Even if it was just building something like that, she gave me so much purpose,” Scheepers said.
Breast cancer is increasing among young women.
Breast cancer is among the most frequently diagnosed cancers in Canada, and the number of younger women being diagnosed with it is rapidly growing. Research in the Canadian Association of Radiologists Journal determined that cases of breast cancer increased by 45.5 percent among women between the ages of 20 and 30 and significantly rose in women aged in their 30s and 40s.
It is alarming because many of the women under 50 have not had the opportunity of early detection of breast cancer through screening, and present at more advanced stages of their cancer. This means their survival is much lower than in older women whose cancers are screen-detected
Dr. Jean Seely, head of breast imaging at the Ottawa Hospital
These younger patients also tend to encounter aggressive forms of cancer, like triple-negative and HER2-positive, which are more difficult to treat and have a higher likelihood of being diagnosed at a later stage because there is less screening.
Experts Call for Earlier Breast Cancer Screening
Current national guidelines in Canada recommend routine breast cancer screening starting at age 50, despite evidence that younger women are at increased risk. Advocates and clinicians, including Dr. Jane Seeley and Dr. Anna Wilkinson, say screening should start at age 40 or even earlier for those at higher risk.
This is all worsened by the fact that our systems are not built to diagnose these women and get them into care quickly, so they often present with later-stage disease and worse outcomes
Dr. Anna Wilkinson, a family physician and general practitioner-oncologist at the Ottawa Hospital
Several provinces, Ontario, B.C., and Nova Scotia, now permit self-referral for screening at 40, but others, Quebec and Manitoba, restrict it to 50. This patchwork arrangement results in inequalities in access by geography.
“One of the big drivers around our shift at (Canadian Cancer Society) around breast cancer was the fact that we are seeing globally earlier onset of cancer. These trends are really requiring us to look at programs and question whether they’re meeting this ever-evolving and expanding need.” Kelly Wilson Cull, director of advocacy at the Canadian Cancer Society
Screening innovation may be a game changer.
With mammograms less effective in women whose breasts are dense, often in younger women, Canadian scientists are creating new, more tailored screening technologies. They include:
A prototype bra employing elastography to identify a tumor
A DNA test in a saliva sample that estimates the risk of breast cancer.
A blood test is being developed at CHUM in Montreal
“We want every breast cancer to be caught and treated early, and for outcomes to continue to improve. Population-based screening programs for people of average risk of breast cancer are part of that, but it’s only one part. With rising numbers in breast cancer cases amongst younger women, we need a new, smarter approach to identifying who is at risk. We need modernized screening programs.” MJ DeCoteau, CEO and founder of Rethink Breast Cancer, said.
Experts indicate these technologies may be used to augment existing practices and enable early identification of those who are at high risk.
The price of discarded symptoms
Valerie's is a heartbreaking norm. Most young women presenting symptoms are informed they are too young for cancer and sent home pictureless. Experts such as Bakon Adegbembo of the Canadian Breast Cancer Network advise that this creates life-threatening delays in diagnosis and treatment.
“Valerie’s experience is common with many of the younger women that we speak to. Like Valerie, they are told that their concerns are nothing, or at least not a symptom of breast cancer. They are also told directly that they are too young to have breast cancer. Breast cancer being predominantly diagnosed in older women isn’t the same thing as breast cancer does not occur in younger women. Unfortunately, it is treated as such.” Bukun Adegbembo, director of operations at Canadian Breast Cancer Network, said.
A legacy of strength, creativity, and love
Valerie's mom, Barbara Buchanan, has put together a scrapbook for Valerie's son - a compilation of artwork, photos, and anecdotes about who her mom was.
Valerie was a beautiful girl. She was an inspiration. She was a fighter. She tried and tried, but the cancer just kept coming back.
Barbara Buchanan, Buchanan’s mother
“It’s been five years of a lot of emotions and a lot of crying, a lot of praying to God, a lot of screaming, a lot of denial. It’s been so hard. I sleep maybe four hours a night. My stomach doesn’t stop aching.We can’t bring my girl back.” Buchanan’s mother, Barbara Buchanan, said
Schepers stays depressed, but he holds onto the memories they created.
“Life became so overwhelming. But what I would do to just get that back. I would have done it all over again. I would have taken care of her for the rest of my life if I had to, if it meant her being around,” Scheepers said.
“I’ll try my best to do next year’s Halloween theme as best as I can,” Scheepers said. “I hope I can be the father she wanted me to be.”
Reference:
1. Della Corte, Robin. “Montreal Woman Dies at 32 after Being Told She Was ‘Too Young for Breast Cancer’.” CTV News, May 3, 2025. Accessed May 6, 2025. https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/article/montreal-woman-dies-at-32-after-being-told-she-was-too-young-for-breast-cancer/.
(Input from various sources)
(Rehash/Muhammad Faisal Arshad/MSM)
