RICHMOND, Va. -- Katherine Randazzo will always remember the start of 2022. The mother of two was floating. She and her high school sweetheart-turned-husband Vinny were expecting their third child.
“There is no better feeling than that. I love it,” Katherine said. “It is what drives me. I love being there for them. They keep me busy. They keep me running for sure.”
Professionally the hairdresser also opened her first salon called Penelope Jane.
“It is me, my sister-in-law, my aunt, and another girl. We’ve been working together for years,” Katherine said.
Life couldn’t get more perfect for Katherine.
“It was probably the peak. It was great,” she said.
But when she discovered a small lump in her chest, Katherine’s world came crashing down.
“And that is when things took a huge nosedive,” Katherine said. “It came back as breast cancer.”
Triple Negative Breast Cancer is one of the most aggressive kinds.
“Oh, I spiraled. I was 28 weeks pregnant when I found out,” Katherine said. “You immediately think is the baby going to be ok. Am I going to be here for the baby? Your mind goes to a very dark place.”
Katherine endures rounds of chemo and a single mastectomy.
The stylist who prides herself on making people look and feel their best lost her hair.
“The kids were hard. They knew something was wrong,” Katherine said. “How do you explain to a then four-year-old and a two-year-old that Mommy has cancer?”
Vinny admires his wife’s tenacity in the face of her brutal illness.
“It was devastating. Total shock. You don’t know how to react,” Vinny said. “She is going to find out a way to get through it. Whether it is straight through it or around it. However, it is. Nothing is going to put her down.”
In June, the Randazzo’s welcomed a healthy little Hayes into the world. A vibrant silver lining to the dark cloud of cancer.
Another delivery of welcomed news arrives in September when doctors declared Katherine cancer free.
“In the triple-negative community, we have a saying ‘live big’ because you know how short life can be. You know?” Katherine said.
The mom of three and business owner is even returning to her customers at Penelope Jane.
“(I feel) great. All things considered,” Kathrine said. “Slowly but surely you pick up the pieces of yourself.”
Radiation and more surgery lie ahead for this survivor. She takes comfort in knowing the worst is behind her.
Business partner Josie Murray said she was not surprised Katherine made a comeback.
“When Katherine sets her mind to something it is going to get done,” Josie said. “I didn’t have any doubt that she was going to get through it. She is strong and I am just happy everything is going the way it is.”
This year will always hold a special place in Katherine Randazzo’s heart. For it was in 2022 that she embraced enormous milestones all while kicking cancer to the curb.
“I think that is really beautiful,” Katherine said. “When you get diagnosed with something like cancer you realize how precious life is.”
Katherine still has a long road. She will be undergoing rounds of radiation and have another mastectomy in the coming weeks and then undergo reconstructive surgery in the spring. But the mother of three said it's not going to stop her from living a normal life.
Watch Greg McQuade's stories on CBS 6 and WTVR.com. If you know someone Greg should profile, email him at greg.mcquade@wtvr.com.
