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Aurora Woman Fights Cancer Again, But Gets Help From Nonprofits

AURORA, Colo. (CBS4) - Organizations like the American Cancer Society and a local nonprofit called Sense of Security are stepping in to help an Aurora woman who is involved in a tough fight against cancer.

"They say I'm too tough and that cancer will never beat me," Susan Shea told CBS4.

The mother of three and grandmother of three battled and survived breast cancer over five years ago. It moved through the lymph nodes and settled in her elbow.

Scars on Shea's body map where the cancer once thrived. She endured thirteen surgeries.

Recently Shea got a devastating health update.

Susan Shea
Susan Shea talks with CBS4's Britt Moreno. (credit: CBS)

"This is round two for cancer with me," she said.

The cancer is back with a vengeance.

"It's on the inner thighs, pelvic region and going up the spine and the left arm here and here," she said.

When Shea was initially diagnosed she quit her job working with domestic violence victims to receive treatments.

Her bills piled up.

That's when several organizations stepped in to help, providing her with information, support and monetary assistance.

"I would have been on the street, actually," she said.

Shea says these days her resolve to be strong only breaks when she thinks of her children.

"It's not so much the cancer with you, it's what happens to those around you," she said.

The American Cancer Society says more than 230,000 women in the United States will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer this year and that 40,000 women will die.

In Colorado alone, 3,300 women will be diagnosed and more than 500 will lose their battle to breast cancer.

Additional Resources

Sense of Security (senseofsecurity.org) offers help for things like paying for groceries or rent and even child care. The American Cancer Society (cancer.org) also offers plenty of support too, and it's all free.

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