What I Needed After Cancer Was Over - by Angie Malone

Angie Malone, Breast Cancer Survivor

My name is Angie Malone, and I'm a 2-year breast cancer survivor. I joined After Cancer in 2025, and looking back, I want to share what that time was really like - because I know I'm not the only one who felt this way.

The Hardest Part Was "What Do I Do Next?"

When treatment ended, everyone thinks you should just be relieved. And I was, in a way. But the hardest part for me was: what do I do next?

I had a nurse navigator. She was gone. All 79 of my doctor's appointments - gone. So I was on my own, and I just didn't know what to do next. I had a lot of anxiety, a lot of pain. Brain fog was horrible. Neuropathy - that was a new one for me. There's just so much that comes into play, and you're stuck going, what do I do next? That was really tough.

What Was Missing

The biggest thing missing for me during that time was community. Needing help. Needing people to lean on, to talk to.

During my journey, I didn't have my family close by. I only had my husband, and he did the best he could - he still is by my side every single day. But I didn't have my mom, my mother-in-law, my brothers, my daughters. Didn't have anybody. They were all 700 miles away, so that was hard. And friends - they weren't there like I wish they would have been. That was kind of scary for me.

Why I Joined After Cancer

The biggest reason I joined was that I needed a sisterhood. I needed friendship. I needed answers to my questions. I needed a sense of community - other women who had been through what I'd been through, and were still going through it, just like me.

I needed to learn how to breathe, how to be mindful. I needed someone to tell me, "Hey, you need to exercise more. These foods are better for you than what you've been eating."

The deep dives have been great - learning from experts, and learning from other women who have walked this walk. That's my biggest reason, and I've learned so much. I keep learning every single day.

What's Changed Since I Joined

I'm a lot happier now. A lot happier. The anxiety has gotten so much better. I've learned how to breathe and not worry so much. Life goes on, even though you're still on this journey - life goes on, and you learn how to live each day a little happier, a little healthier. That's been a big, big deal for me.

Why I Think Every Survivor Needs This

I truly believe more survivors need access to something like this. Like I said, it's that sense of community - we all need that. It's a scary word, cancer. I remember when I was a kid, my mother would say, "Oh, so-and-so has cancer," and it just felt so scary.

But when you actually walk that walk yourself, you realize we all need to come together - as friends, as a sisterhood, as a community - and talk things through, and work together, and make our lives a little more peaceful and a little happier.

That's pretty much why I think everyone who has walked this walk needs this in their life.

Thank you so much for reading my story.