Carla Terrell was 38 when she found a lump on her breast that turned out to be cancer. After beating it with chemotherapy, the cancer came back 5 years later — but she beat it again with early detection. This Friday, Terrell’s longtime wish is coming true of being selected to participate in the annual Kentucky Oaks Survivors Parade, a moving tradition celebrating breast and ovarian cancer survivors and those still fighting as they march on Churchill Downs’ historic racetrack.
Terrell, now 58, was a stay-at-home mom with children ages 6 and 4 when she was 38. Her breast cancer diagnosis came as a shock.
“I had gone on a girls’ weekend and one of the girls mentioned that she found a lump, and it turned out to be benign,” Terrell said. “And I thought at the time ‘I don’t check myself at all.’ I didn’t do regular breast exams. I did one and I found a lump and I thought ‘I’m gonna be like my friend, it’s going to be nothing.’ But it wasn’t.”
Terrell said she was healthy at the time and was running every day.
“I didn’t know a thing about really any kind of cancer. I really didn’t fit the kind of typical idea that you think of as having breast cancer, so it was a huge shock,” she said.
Terrell went through chemotherapy and radiation to get rid of the cancer, and the community played a big role in helping her navigate the experience.
“I was early-stage, so I felt pretty good after going through treatment that my chances of survival were really good, “ she said. “I had just so much support from my friends and family. People I didn’t even know reached out, brought me meals, sent me letters. So it was really humbling experience.”
In the 5 years after she beat cancer, Terrell had mammograms, scans, and blood work regularly — every 6 months at first and then annually.
Right around the 5-year mark, Terrell had a breast MRI that showed the cancer was back in the same spot.
“Luckily it was so early-stage that I did not have to do chemotherapy, but I had had to have a pretty radical surgery,” she said, adding that the surgery totally removed the cancer.
In between her diagnoses, at age 40, Terrell decided to go into nursing as a direct result of her experience.
When the cancer returned, she was already working as a nurse at the Owensboro Cancer Center and was heavily involved with the Kentucky Cancer Program and Horses and Hope.
Horses and Hope was started in 2008 by former Kentucky First Lady Jane Beshear and the Kentucky Cancer Program, University of Louisville, with the support of the Pink Stable — a committee of Kentucky horse owners, riders, trainers, jockeys, and others.
Horses and Hope was established to increase breast cancer screening, education, and treatment referral among Kentucky’s signature horse industry workers and other special populations. The program has since been expanded to offer cancer prevention and early detection services for many different cancers through the Horses and Hope Cancer Screening Van.
Special events honoring breast cancer survivors are also held across the state. The Horses and Hope program was part of the inaugural Kentucky Oaks Survivors Parade and continues to play a major role in it.
Every year, 150 Kentuckians are randomly selected from the hundreds who apply to participate in the parade.
The participants and a guest — Terrell’s is her husband Steve — walk the track between two of the Kentucky Oaks races on Friday.
“I’ve been trying to get in for a long time and finally got chosen this year, so I’m very excited about it,” Terrell said. “I couldn’t believe it. … Then I was excited to recognize several names of survivors I’ve seen throughout the years, so I’m gonna know some people there as well.”
Terrell has gone to Kentucky Derby activities for many years, so she’s witnessed the Survivors Parade from the stands.
“It’s just kind of a sea of pink. It’s pretty inspiring to watch when you’re there, so I really look forward to being part of it,” she said.
Terrell is still with Owensboro Health as a nurse practitioner at their local urgent care office. She stressed that women should regularly check for any signs of cancer, as early detection is key.
