The Mastectomy She Always Wanted: A Candid Conversation About Breast Cancer, Body Image, and Choice
When you hear the phrase “the mastectomy I always wanted,” it makes you stop, right?
It’s bold. Unexpected. Even a little jarring.
And that’s exactly why I knew I needed to have Erica Neubert Campbell on the Message in the Middle podcast. Erica is a breast cancer survivor, a longtime advocate, and the author of a beautifully honest memoir by the same name. She’s also the Executive Director of the Pinky Swear Foundation, a nonprofit supporting kids with cancer and their families. But most of all—she’s a woman who’s walked through cancer not once, but twice. First as a daughter, and then as a patient.
In our conversation, Erica opened up about what it really means to make empowered medical decisions in the face of fear. After ten years of stressful mammograms and biopsies, she made the personal and very intentional decision to have a mastectomy—not out of desperation, but from a place of clarity and peace. Her words around that moment were powerful:
What We Talk About in This Episode:
- What it means to “speak the vocabulary of cancer”
- How a decade of scary mammograms led to Erica’s decision
- Mastectomy vs. lumpectomy—how fear and trust factored in
- Common misconceptions about mastectomy and recovery
- Why she titled her memoir The Mastectomy I Always Wanted
- How fear, choice, and trust shaped her experience
- Body image and identity after mastectomy
- Silver linings in the breast cancer journey
- The mission of the Pinky Swear Foundation
- Erica’s goal in sharing her story and supporting others
Erica doesn’t shy away from the hard stuff—and honestly, that’s what makes her story resonate so deeply. She talks candidly about grief, trauma, and resilience, but also about beauty, strength, and what it means to feel whole again after cancer.
Her voice is compassionate, clear, and deeply grounded in truth—exactly the kind of voice I want to bring you more of on Message in the Middle.
If you or someone you love is facing breast cancer, navigating mastectomy recovery, or simply seeking connection around body image and choice—you’ll want to hear this one.
🎧 Listen to the full episode here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1938384/episodes/16997313
📘 Grab Erica’s book: The Mastectomy I Always Wanted
💗 Learn more about Pinky Swear Foundation: Pinky Swear Foundation
