A nurse’s journey through advanced breast cancer: Michele’s invasive ductal carcinoma Stage 4 diagnosis

A nurse’s journey through advanced breast cancer: Michele’s invasive ductal carcinoma Stage 4 diagnosis 
Norton Healthcare, Paducah, KY; by Sara Thompson; 9/15/25 
When Paducah, Kentucky, native Michele Burgess received her Stage 4 invasive ductal carcinoma diagnosis Feb. 6, 2020, she faced the advanced breast cancer the same way she approaches everything in life — head on. As a nurse manager for an inpatient hospice unit, Michele had spent years caring for others in their most vulnerable moments. Now, she would draw on that same strength for her own battle. ... Most people expected Michele to step away from her demanding career after her cancer diagnosis. After all, working in hospice while fighting breast cancer seemed like an impossible burden. But Michele saw it differently. “Why wouldn’t I continue?” she asked herself. Her work gave her purpose, and her 10-bed inpatient unit needed her steady leadership. ...