Glennon Doyle's Sister and We Can Do Hard Things Co-Host Amanda Reveals Breast Cancer Diagnosis at Age 45

• Amanda Doyle revealed that she was diagnosed with breast cancer
• She is set to undergo a double mastectomy and breast reconstruction surgery
• She is sharing her health journey in hopes of raising awareness for prevention

Glennon Doyle’s sister Amanda Doyle revealed that she was recently diagnosed with breast cancer.

In the May 14 episode of their podcast We Can Do Hard Things, which they co-host alongside Glennon’s wife and soccer icon Abby Wambach, the 45-year-old detailed the “scary” health update.  

“Three weeks ago I was informed that a biopsy that I had revealed breast cancer. The first couple of weeks were very much a rollercoaster of, ‘What does that mean? How bad is it? What is the prognosis?’ All of that,” she shared. “It’s just kind of a doozy. I don’t know that it’s ever not surprising to people to learn something like this.”

Amanda explained that her friend died six months ago from cancer and she started to worry about how awful it is for the many people who are diagnosed when the disease has already progressed.

“I just remember thinking over and over what absolute horse s— it is and why I think it doesn’t make sense that people only find out about their cancer when it’s too late,” she said.

Amanda decided to be proactive and get genetic testing done. And when her results “freaked me out,” she visited a facility for cancer prevention. There, Amanda learned that she had a higher risk for cancer.

“Because of the density of my breasts and because of our family history, they had me at three times the average for the likelihood of developing cancer sometime in my life,” she said on the show.

With that information, Amanda was told to get a baseline MRI. Despite getting her yearly mammograms, cancer was detected and she received her diagnosis shortly after.

“I was just sitting on the side of the road with my cellphone and it was very eerie and odd,” she recalled, getting the news while on a family vacation. “I remember being like, ‘Holy sh—, I saved my life.’”

“I was so angry and frustrated and just incredulous that this is the way it works. You get sick or you feel some intense pain or this tumor breaks a bone in your body and that’s how you find out you have cancer,” she continued. “I felt a very overwhelming sense of gratitude that that wasn’t the case and that the thing that I really really didn’t want to happen, wasn't going to happen.”

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Following her breast cancer diagnosis, Amanda received a “very good prognosis.” But after many more tests, she learned that was not a candidate for a lumpectomy and would need a mastectomy.

Amanda said on the podcast that in one week she would be undergoing a double mastectomy and breast reconstruction. She’ll learn after the procedure whether or not radiation or other treatments will be necessary.

Amanda noted that because she caught it early, doctors insisted that her cancer is “not a threat to my life at all.” She also urged others to stay on top of their regular screenings and vowed to discuss more about breast cancer prevention on the show.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the United States, except for skin cancers. According to the National Cancer Institute, early detection through mammograms allows patients to get a head start on treatment, and can decrease the likelihood of it spreading.

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force states that women should be getting regular mammograms when they turn 40.

Health officials also advise women of all ages to practice "breast self-awareness," which means becoming familiar with how a person's own breasts normally look and feel, so they will be more likely to recognize anything out of the ordinary when doing a breast self-examination.

On May 14, Amanda also posted a video on her Glennon and Abby’s Instagram pages about her health.

“I’ve learned from Glennon that there is power in sharing from the messy middle and not waiting until you’re on the other side of things. And we’re certainly not on the other side of this but we’ll get there,” she said in the clip.

“In the meantime I want to make sure that all of you who are walking through this know that you are seen and honored. And I also want to do what I can to try and prevent other people from having to go through this.”