Graciela Guzman got the diagnosis that no one wants to hear — twice.

Guzman was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer in 2016. Five years after beating the disease, it came back.

“The second time was a lot harder,” Guzman — a teacher at Episcopal Day School in Brownsville — said. “At that point, two of my friends had passed away from breast cancer."

Guzman got a mastectomy to remove two tumors during her first battle with cancer.

“And that small one was an aggressive cancer,” Guzman recalled.

After her lymph nodes were also removed, Guzman went through a year of chemo therapy. 

The cancer cleared, but her prevention efforts did not end there.

During the five years after her initial diagnosis, Guzman took Tamoxifen to reduce the risk of the cancer's return.

Guzman said the disease came back anyway without any warning signs.

She sought treatment at the MD Anderson in Houston and got another mastectomy.

Today, she's cancer free and back to work.

Guzman said she's thankful for every day.

“My life is very blessed,” Guzman said. “I have my husband, my two children, my daughter-in-law and granddaughter. I’m just wanting to make more memories with them."

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