It isn’t every day you find out that you have breast cancer right smack in the middle of moving into your dream home. And as far as Cathy Croshaw—attorney, wife, mother, and proud new owner of a house in Lake Tahoe, California—was concerned, cancer wasn’t on the schedule.

Caught up in the whirlwind of moving day, her life packed into boxes and her husband directing movers from room to room, Cathy got the kind of phone call no one wants to receive: The hospital that had performed her routine mammogram just the day before wanted her back as soon as possible to run some more tests. Soon after, an official breast cancer diagnosis pierced through the chaos of her bright, busy life, bringing with it an unexpected new reality for Cathy and her loved ones. What came next is a human story shared by women around the world, told with uncommon wit and clarity. From advocating for the right medical team to trying on wigs to grappling with unforeseen medical side effects, Cathy’s experience with breast cancer proves that few things in this world are a match for preventive screening, a strong support network, and wicked sense of humor.