When Dionnetre Watkins—known to friends and family as Dionne—first felt a lump in her breast while showering in the summer of 2023, she was already in the midst of several major life transitions. She had recently moved to a new home, her 11-year-old daughter was preparing to switch schools, and Dionne had just received a promotion at work.
Unsure what she had found but determined not to wait, Dionne scheduled an emergency virtual visit with her primary care provider to show the change she had noticed. That appointment quickly led to an in-person evaluation and diagnostic testing.
Within days, Dionne received the news that would change her life: at just 35 years old, Dionne was diagnosed with stage II triple-negative breast cancer—an aggressive subtype that does not respond to hormone therapy and often requires chemotherapy as the primary treatment.
“I was scared,” Dionne recalls. “You hear so many stories, and not always the good ones. I kept thinking, Am I going to make it? What’s next? I had just gotten this promotion, my daughter was going through so much change, and suddenly I’m hearing that I have cancer.”
For Dionne, the diagnosis quickly led her to care at MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center, where she met her oncologist, Mounika Gangireddy, MD.
“Triple-negative breast cancer is one of the more aggressive subtypes,” Dr. Gangireddy explains. “Even when it is diagnosed at an early stage, treatment is important to reduce the risk of recurrence. Our goal with chemotherapy and immunotherapy is what we call a ‘pathologic complete response,’ meaning that when surgery happens, we cannot find even a single cancer cell remaining.”
From the start, Dionne felt surrounded by a team that helped guide her through what lay ahead. “The care, the staff, the love, the support—everything was top ten,” she says. “They introduced me to everyone on my care team, from my oncologist to my nurse navigator. They gave me a book that mapped out the journey, and I was ready to take it one step at a time.”
Dionne’s treatment included both chemotherapy and immunotherapy. During her course of care, she experienced a rare neurological reaction linked to the immunotherapy, something that occurs in fewer than one percent of patients. Dionne paused immunotherapy while recovering from the neurological effects. Her physicians adjusted her treatment to continue chemotherapy alone, to which Dionne responded very well.
Within a few rounds of chemotherapy, Dr. Gangireddy could no longer feel the tumor. Ultimately, Dionne achieved the outcome every patient hopes for. “When patients reach a pathologic complete response, their long-term survival improves significantly,” Dr. Gangireddy explains. “Dionne did extremely well.”
In March 2024, Dionne rang the bell in the infusion center to mark the completion of chemotherapy—surrounded by family, friends, and the care team who had supported her throughout the journey. “I had about 20 people there cheering for me,” she says. “The entire infusion staff came out. We took pictures, we celebrated. I just remember thinking: ‘Thank God I made it this far.’”
She later underwent surgery and reconstruction, choosing a bilateral mastectomy to reduce the chance of recurrence.
Today, Dionne continues to move forward, one milestone at a time. Along the way, she credits the comprehensive support available to patients as an essential part of her recovery. In addition to medical treatment, MedStar Health connects patients with nurse navigators, social workers, and other specialists who help coordinate care and provide emotional support and practical guidance during cancer treatment.
“The support I received meant everything,” Dionne says. “There were people checking in on me, helping me navigate appointments and making sure I had what I needed during a really hard time.” Nearly two years after her diagnosis, Dionne is looking toward the future with gratitude. “I’m here, I’m happy,” she says. “And I’m ready for the next chapter.”