Finding Beauty Beyond the Battle
When Alisa Ross of Green Bay first heard the words “breast cancer,” her world shifted in an instant. Diagnosed with Stage 2B triple-positive breast cancer, she faced a whirlwind of treatments: chemotherapy, a double mastectomy, radiation, and hormonal therapy. The initial shock was overwhelming. “I was scared and in disbelief,” she recalls. But through the fear, Alisa discovered a strength she never knew she had.
Physically, the journey was grueling. Radiation burns left her in pain and nearly required hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Emotionally, the toll was just as heavy. “Self-image has always been a struggle,” Alisa shares. “Losing my breasts and nipples felt like losing part of my womanhood.” Yet, in the face of these losses, she found a new way to define herself, not by what was taken, but by what remained.
Support came from unexpected places. Friends she hadn’t spoken to in years reached out, and new connections blossomed. “People came out of the woodwork,” she says. “It was beautiful to rekindle lost friendships and form new ones.”
Alisa’s perspective on life has shifted dramatically. “Now, I take every day as a gift,” she says. “Even when I catch myself getting upset over something small, I remind myself I’m lucky to be here.”
Confidence, for Alisa, means showing up in her own skin and embracing her journey. That’s why she chose to participate in the boudoir-style portrait campaign. “I want other women to see that there’s still beauty after cancer,” she says. Her portraits are more than images, they’re symbols of resilience, hope, and the power of showing up as your authentic self.
Her message to those newly diagnosed is one of compassion and encouragement: “There will be hard days, but joy and happiness will return. Change can be beautiful.” She lives by the mantra, “One day at a time—sometimes one minute.”
Alisa hopes her story and portrait inspire others to see strength and beauty in the face of adversity. “You can overcome the darkest days with a smile,” she says. And she knows this firsthand, not only as a survivor, but as a mother to two miracle children born through egg donor IVF.
Her advice is simple yet profound: “Take each day as it comes. Allow yourself to fall apart but then pick up the pieces. Don’t compare your journey to anyone else’s.”