Nancy Beat Breast Cancer – Aya Family by Her Side

Breast Cancer Awareness Month is coming to an end, but breast cancer affects people every single day of the year. Aya clinical manager, Nancy Sedwitz, knows this all too well. She beat breast cancer twice! Nancy was working at Aya for less than a year when she was diagnosed the second time, but her concerns about being a newer employee were quickly turned into reassurance that all she needed to worry about was getting better.

Nancy didn’t want to take time off, though — she still wanted to be a contributor to her team. So, she worked flexible hours around her treatment schedule and continued to fulfill her work responsibilities. Nancy’s Aya family sent her a beautiful blanket covered with inspiring phrases, and each week during her treatment, our employee experience team made sure she received an uplifting, handwritten note of support and motivation.

Feeling the Love

Rather than feeling isolated or like a burden, Nancy felt supported by Aya and her coworkers – which made a world of difference during this extremely difficult time. “At the end of the day I would say I’m so grateful,” says Nancy. “Because YAY, I’m cancer free! And I had the support of my faith, my family, my friends and my employer through all of that.”

Per breastcancer.org, about 1 in 8 women in the United States will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime — and by the end of 2019 alone, an estimated 268,600 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed in women along with nearly 2,670 new cases in men.

The numbers are staggering. But Nancy inspires us each and every day —and we know her story gives others dealing with breast cancer hope. A support system is essential in the healing process, and we’re so happy our employees could stand by Nancy’s side when it was needed most.

There are still a few days left in October, and for any review left on Facebook, Google, Indeed or Glassdoor, we’ll donate $10 (up to $500) to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. We encourage you to stop by and let people know how Aya’s doing and support an amazing cause at the same time.

Watch the video below to hear Nancy’s story: