Pink and proactive

At 31, Andria Cucci doesn’t have cancer, but until last month, she had reason to worry about it.

Her mother, Laura, died of breast cancer March 1, 1996, after a three-year battle. She was only 38. Andria was 12, and her sister, Lauren, was just 6. 

“My mom has two sisters,” Andrea Cucci said. “One died of breast cancer and my other aunt has stage 4 breast cancer. It’s scary to think about.”

But after genetic testing showed Andria Cucci and her sister both had an 80% chance of developing breast cancer and were also at high risk for developing ovarian cancer at some point in their lives, Andria Cucci decided to do something to change her odds.

On Feb. 16, she underwent a double mastectomy, reducing her chances of developing breast cancer to less than 10%. She’ll continue to have reconstructive breast treatments for the next two months. Following the surgery, she feels good, albeit sore.

“It’s a huge sense of relief for me,” Andria Cucci said. “I’m living in the 10%. I always worried about it. I’ve had mammograms since I was 24, anyway. My mentality was, if I get breast cancer, I’ll catch it early.”

She previously had MRIs, ultrasounds and mammograms multiple times each year because of her high-risk status; now, she’ll have a single mammogram annually. 

Lauren Cucci, now 25, plans to have a double mastectomy surgery in five years, at the recommendation of her doctor.

“Right now, I’m not in Andria’s shoes,” Lauren Cucci said. “I’m in support mode for my sister.”

Andria Cucci and a team of relatives and friends, dubbed Team Cucci, will host the Team Cucci for a Cure fundraiser April 12, at The Brickyard, behind O’Bricks Irish Pub and Martini Bar, 427 12th St. W., Bradenton. Proceeds from the event will help pay for surgeries for the girls, as well as raise awareness about the importance of BRACAnalysis testing, which the Cucci sisters used to determine their hereditary cancer risk. 

Organizers say they hope to make the event annual to raise money for other women who wish to take the BRACAnalysis test, which can cost thousands of dollars if not covered by insurance.

“We’re hoping to continue this and build on it every year,” co-organizer and aunt Kathleen Cucci said.

The Cucci sisters underwent BRACAnalysis in October 2013 at Lauren Cucci’s prompting.

“It felt like a no-brainer,” Lauren Cucci said. “I had a feeling we had that gene.”

Andria Cucci didn’t think she’d be positive. She took the test to support her sister. But the BRACAnalysis testing revealed Andria’s own genes showed she had an 80% chance of developing cancer. 

“It could happen tomorrow, or it could happen when I’m 80,” she said. “I didn’t want cancer to choose me.”

Andria Cucci now hopes to raise awareness about genetic testing so other women can face cancer proactively.

“If you have this gene, you need to be proactive,” she said.