When did you finish treatment, and how are you doing?

I finished treatment in early April of this year, and I feel better every day. I feel stronger every day. I feel more like myself every day. The mind came back first. The body has been a little slower. Still aches and pains, but I have the feeling back finally in my toes and fingers. So, I'm just grateful. Just grateful.

Every body wants to know, what's the prognosis?

Still very good. It's very good. I will go back for some tests in the fall. But all indications are that everything went as well as can be expected. The chemotherapy looked like it did what it was supposed to do and the radiation. So, the prognosis is still very good.

Do you think about it every day still?

Not every day. I don't think about it every day. It's not the first thing. It used to be I'd wake up and, woof, it was right there on my mind. But during the course of the day, mainly, it's because people they mean well and I'm very happy they come up and share their story with me. And it kind of brings me back. Also doing the stories. I recently did something with Christina Applegate and her diagnosis and it brings you back to your time. But it's not something that's constantly on my mind.

And I really try to put out of my mind the possibility of it returning. And that's something I've had to work on a little bit. Oh, if I have a little ache or something, no it's not cancer. It's just I bumped something. To get away from that fear, but to also remain quite vigilant and diligent about my healthcare.

Do you think staying busy helps with that, keeping that fear of recurrence in check?

For me, I have to stay busy. I had some people say what are you doing? Why are you working so much? And why are you working now? I actually took more time off this summer and really needed more time post-treatment than treatment. Treatment, I just wanted a schedule and I wanted to be here as much as I could.

After treatment I went through a bit of depression. There was a bit of a let down because I thought I was going to have this feeling of euphoria. Yeah, I'm through it. And then it was like wait a minute, someones not checking me every day. I'm not going to see a doctor everyday. Oh, it's on my own. And so I had this fear kind of creep in a little bit. For me, staying active has been key. I enjoy my work. I'm very blessed. I enjoy my work. It just helps me keep my mind off things.

How did you come up with the plan of when to work and how much to work?

I went into it so naive. I was such a kid when I think about it. I thought, OK I'll have chemo on Fridays so that way I can work all week long and I'll just take the weekend off and I'll be back on Monday. And my doctors patted me on the head and said that's really nice, but that's not realistic. And so I would have the chemo on Thursdays. Come into work, have chemo on Thursday, be off on Friday, Saturday, Sunday off Monday. And then if I was able, come back Tuesday. And there were sometimes that I didn't come back until the latter part of the week. So what I did is I listened to my body. I really listened to my body and it was a learn-as-you-go kind of process. I just kind of figured it out on the fly.

Your employer sounds like mine -- willing to work with you so you can maintain the work schedule when you want, but you and I both know not everybody has that type of employer.

You know Kelley, we are so fortunate, we are so blessed in that regard. To not only have an employer but our fellow employees, I get emotional when I think about it. I know it's the same way for you at Channel 5. Diane and Sam and Chris and everyone behind the scenes. They were just, they were just absolutely amazing

The entire GMA family. And I know it's not that way and you know it's not that way for a lot of folks that are going through this. They're afraid to tell their employer for fear that they will be treated differently. For fear that they will be let go. For fear of how people will now treat them. And just the opposite happened here. I was truly embraced.

And I wanted to show people, and I'm sure you did, too when they tuned in and they saw you knowing what you were going through. It let people know who were going through it. Oh if I choose to, if I'm able to, I can go to work too. And I think that sent a very strong message.

When you look back at your treatment, what's the low point?

The low point was not being me. The low point was I've always prided myself on being athletic. I played basketball, tennis. Back in the day, I played college basketball.

I really felt my body, for the first time, let me down. And that was hard. It was just a feeling of hopelessness at moments. So hard to lift your head off the pillow some mornings so just the loss of self was the lowest point for me.

You also had kind of a surprise when you thought you weren't going to have chemo and then you found out you did. How did you cope with that?

This happens a lot. When you're first diagnosed, all this information is coming to you. And it did look early on that the cancer was not as aggressive as we found out later after surgery it was. Initially, I thought, well ok I'll have the tumor removed, and then I'll have some radiation, pop some pills and be on my way. And then when I found out shortly after surgery that it was more aggressive.

In fact, the tumor was termed nasty looking. So I had this feeling of, like, underneath the glass my tumor was snarling up at the doctor. And I was like {makes a fist} I ought to. It did throw me for a loop because that was the first time I was like chemotherapy? No one said chemotherapy. And that was a tough time for me.

And that brings forth the whole thing about appearance. You know you're going to have these physical changes that are going come with chemotherapy. Most notably for a television news anchor, you're going to lose your hair.

We're going to the hair, are we? I knew we'd eventually get to the hair. It's something when you hear chemotherapy the first thing -- more so than if I going to live or die -- I was kind of like, I'm going to lose my hair? And then, like, oh I might die. But no, you think about it because it's a visual medium that we're in and the society that we're in as well. It's all about appearance. And it was very difficult to see myself that way. But can I tell you, I didn't mind. As soon as I lost the hair.

You weren't cold at night? C'mon. It was more traumatic on the hair watch. Waiting for it to fall out. But once I shaved it and that was it. Yeah, our moms were right. Yes, heat does leave through the head so I was cold a lot. Putting on hats and that.

I did it and I kind of looked and I was like, alright. I was comfortable but I didn't like the fact that being without hair made other people uncomfortable. And so I found myself putting on a hat or wearing a wig for other people's comfort. And then I was like what am I making them comfortable for? I'm the one that's been through all this. But it is something that goes through your mind.

But it's the look. You and I both know the look that people give you when they see a woman or man or a child walking down the street that has no hair. They do the double take and then they give you the look. And the look and the give you the that little tilt of the head. Again people mean well.
Try it pushing a baby carriage.
I'm sure you went through it ten-fold. If you see a person walk in and they have don't have any hair. That was the first time I felt like a cancer patient. Before that, I could hide it. Before that, it was like any other day and no one really knew. But when you lose your hair, that's when it's kind of like you've got stamped on your head "cancer" or something like that.

I didn't want people feeling sorry for me. I didn't want the tilt of the head. I didn't want the oooh. Even though I knew people meant well by their reactions.

So, what do you hope people learn from watching your cancer experience?

That we're all a little bit stronger than we think we are. That if you do catch it early that you increase your chances significantly of being able to put it behind you. That it's OK to cry. Even now, but these are tears of joy. The emotion that you go through, it's OK. And it's OK as a woman to let go and let others do for you. And that was what was so difficult for you.

You as a mom, you are always doing. But I just want people to know that we're all a little bit stronger than we think we are. Cancer is not a death sentence. It does not have to be a death sentence. It is not a cakewalk and I never wanted to make it appear to be a cakewalk. It is a long walk and it is a journey, but it's one that you should have others on that path with you to help you down that walk.

Talk about the role your faith played in getting through treatment.

I don't know how people do it if you don't have faith. I just don't know how you get through something like this. I don't know how you get through anything, especially something like this without your faith. It sustained me. It comforted me. It really let me know that I was truly going to be OK. I think you make it so much more difficult for yourself if you don't have faith. If you don't have that positive energy and spirit as well.

My church family, they still have me in the bulletin every day. Every Sunday that they are praying for me. Can I just tell you that I honestly felt the prayers being said for me. I did. The moment that I let people know what was going on I got my best night's sleep that night because I felt the prayers. It lifted me. It let me really know that everything was going to be OK.

And how about your family. You had been through so much as a family when Hurricane Katrina basically destroyed your hometown. And then two years later another crisis.

My father died suddenly. 2005 Hurricane Katrina. And then two years later my diagnosis with breast cancer. I felt so bad that I was adding to my family's burden. And I just felt like oh, I didn't really want to tell my mother. She's 84 now. And my sister who lost her husband in 2002 to colon cancer is raising three young kids.

I was like, I just don't want to add to it. But they were the ones who rallied around me and they were like, oh finally we get to do for you. Finally, we get to be there. You've helped us through so much loss. I felt like the baby of the family again. It was the first time I felt truly like the baby of the family in a long time because I like to be the one that's out, doing and helping.

I think because my mother has said all along when all these things have happened to us that we make our mess our message. So when I wanted to kind of run and hide in that corner over there, my mother was like no, we make our mess our message. What we're going through, you are a messenger. There's something you're supposed to be experiencing that's not only going to help yourself but more importantly going to help others -- going to be the voice of those who don't have a voice who are going through that. And then once I wrapped myself around that, I was able to pick myself up and move forward.

So moving forward, how do you balance being a journalist and being an advocate?

That's an excellent question, and that's one that I have struggled with, and that's one I don't know if I always get right. I don't know. The way I look at it is that I take my cue from the audience and from the feedback that we receive. And from people that were saying that they had a better understanding through what I was going through because I was going through it and sharing it.

And so I was very careful in how much I shared and always very quick about just saying I'm a symbol of what's happening to many. To not make it so much about myself but using me as an example to help others. It was the same way after Hurricane Katrina, it's my hometown that gets blown away -- virtually blown away. So yes, I'm there as a journalist but I'm also there as a daughter, a sister who sees their loved ones and others just hurting. And what can I do to help them.

But the audience really gives you a break if they know that you're coming with a pure heart. That what I'm doing is not to better my situation and not to shine a light on my situation, but to use my situation to better their situation.

Any regrets?

No I don't. Diane, we talked about this. No one ever presented me with something and said we need to do this story about cancer. Or you should do... They kind of took the cue from me. For the most part my gut served me well. I hesitated about showing my hair being shaved. The only reason I did show it was because I was going to be in People magazine and I was completely bald. And I didn't want people to think, hey wait a minute she's been pulling one over on us. And to see that I'm not ashamed of that. That because I am in this position, I don't want to be a distraction, and so I presented myself in a way that wasn't distracting from the news.

But when I really got honest, I realized part of it also was I was clinging to how I looked before. So, when I finally took the wig off, which I have no regrets about that, when I finally took the wig off, it was because I was finally comfortable with this is who I am. This is how I look now. This is me. And not clinging to the past.

Not just about appearance obviously, but about everything.

I am not the same. I can't go out and play basketball right now. I can't do some of the things I once did. And perhaps I will be able to do those things once again. But also I'm not the same person. I look at things a little bit differently now. I used to say before that I was enjoying the moment and I was staying in the moment. I wasn't. I am now. I breathe much more now. I take a breath, I take a step back. I just have a better appreciation than I did before. And I'm not the same. And I don't want to be the same. You can't go through something that's life-altering and come out of it at the end being exactly like you were when you entered. Then what was this last year about?

But it's really funny because you find yourself during the year clinging so much to what you were before. Looking how you were before, everything. And then when you finally let go and you realize this is something that I'm supposed to be experiencing. This is a lesson that I'm learning that's going to help me. That's when you can really take a breath.

Your books out in paperback. You added a chapter. What was the purpose of that?

It's ironic that right after I realized my book in April, my diagnosis came along. I was reading my book and there was now this huge chapter that was now happening. And I wanted to title it, which I did, Make Your Mess your Message because I thought this past year I applied those rules to live by. That was the name of the book, Seven Rules to Live By.

I applied those rules and I wanted to show people, wait a minute, if something happens in your life -- just apply whatever challenge you've had before. Apply those same principles, and you're going to get through it. And that really helped me when I started reading my book and going through those same principles anytime I had a challenge in my life. It kind of minimized it. It made it seem like cancer was no more than any other problem that I've had. I didn't want to give it any more importance. People were asking me to write a book about my experience, and I was like, no. I will write a chapter because cancer is no more than a chapter in my life. That's it, and that's how I look at it. As a chapter in my life, and I'm determined to make sure it's not the last chapter in my life.

Christina Applegate said three weeks after her surgery, "I'm cancer free, I'm not going to die of breast cancer." Are you as confident?

I'm not going to die today. I'm very cautious because it's so soon for me to say I'm cancer free. I don't know if I'll ever be cancer free. I'll be clear. Right now, everything is clear at the moment. But I'm very confident that whatever does happen, I'll be prepared for it. And it's amazing that that caused quite a debate when Christina Applegate declared herself cancer free and she said I will not die from breast cancer. More power to her.

And I maintain that same positive attitude. But I do know there's a high recurrence when it comes to in particular breast cancer. But more importantly I know I'm not afraid. I know that I'm a survivor, and I know that I can handle anything that comes my way. I pray for the day that I can say with all confidence and all certainty that I am cancer free. I pray for that time when the technology and the medicine is there that no one has to experience what we experienced, Kelley. But until that time, I remain very confident, upbeat and take it one day at a time.