Jessica Miller, of Canfield, Ohio gets help from Nightbirde Foundation to beat cancer

CANFIELD, Ohio (WKBN) — As Breast Cancer Awareness Month wraps up, First News offers a story of hope: A Canfield woman battling breast cancer is not letting it stop her from fulfilling her dream of becoming a mother.

Thanks to a foundation in memory of an Ohio woman who lost her battle to cancer, Jessica Miller is one step closer to the future she’d dreamed of.

Miller’s journey began with a shooting pain near her heart and a lump in her breast. After a trip to the doctor and a mammogram, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.

“They told me that I needed to have a double mastectomy, as well as chemotherapy,” Miller said.

Miller said she couldn’t go through with it, because she’s always wanted children and knew that would ruin the possibility. She searched for other alternatives and found a doctor who specializes in breast cryoablation, which freezes eligible breast tumors.

The reason she chose it? It’s breast and fertility conserving.

The 39-year-old says she was confused when she got the cancer diagnosis.

“I was in complete despair. I felt hopeless. I went a little crazy and screamed,” Miller said. “I got mad. I didn’t know what to do.”

After determining her treatment plan, the next giant Miller had to face was fear.

One of her inspirations was Jane “Nightbirde” Marczewski, an Ohio native who was on America’s Got Talent before passing away from cancer at age 31 last year.

“She just kept on pushing through, no matter the odds, and she was incredibly inspiring,” Miller said. “Just full of love, life, passion, faith and hope.”

Now, there’s the Nightbirde Foundation in Marczewski’s name that partners with women battling cancer to give them hope and healing.

After learning about the foundation, Miller wrote them letters. Then, Marczewski’s brother Mitch called her and met her in Canfield.

“He donated $5,000 to my cancer treatment, toward the cryoablation, and he also challenged me to raise $10,000 more and the foundation would double it.”

That money would help her tremendously.

“It has given me the opportunity to create life and to do things as I had hoped to,” Miller said.

If there’s one message people take away from her and Marczewski’s story, Miller says it’s that there’s always hope.

“There’s always hope. To never give up, to never stop learning and researching,” Miller said. “Not everything is as it seems, and there are ways to beat it, against all odds.”

Miller said her blood work came back clear a couple months ago, and she meets with her oncologist next month.