In the quiet of the morning, Kalpa lights a lamp. This daily ritual has become an important grounding spiritual practice for the mother of two. It reminds her that the light she carries within continues to shine, even during her darkest days.

When Kalpa turned 50, she went in for a routine mammogram. It found something. A biopsy confirmed that it was an aggressive form of stage I breast cancer.

“Your head is just spinning,” Kalpa said. She immediately thought of her kids. “I know they're older, but they still need me … I was in a really dark place. Then you move quickly from disbelief to decision-making.”

Kalpa had surgery to remove visible cancer. The next step was to assess her need for chemotherapy with the Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score^® test.

Kalpa is trained as a scientist. In her career, she finds purpose in turning academic discoveries into products that make a difference in people’s lives. Now she found herself trying to evaluate a test that could have a significant impact on her own life.

“I agonized over: How do I trust this test?” Kalpa said.

Decision-making in healthcare

Many women grapple with important healthcare choices for themselves and their families. Often primary caregivers for children and aging relatives, women make an estimated 80% of healthcare decisions for their households.1,2

With rapid innovation and the consumerization of healthcare, those decisions have become more complex. Today, patients are experiencing both the benefit and the burden of expanding options. Even for those with relevant backgrounds, distinguishing marketing claims from true performance can be a real challenge.

One thing cuts through the noise: trust backed by science.

Science sheds light on breast cancer treatment decisions

Kalpa approached the decision with both urgency and rigor. She began researching to better understand the Oncotype DX^® test, a global standard-of-care for early-stage, hormone receptor-positive breast cancer.

“I read the actual clinical trial paper,” she said. “The test was truly backed by world class science — that’s what gave me confidence.”

More than 2 million patients have trusted the Oncotype DX test to inform their treatment. It is the only test proven to be both prognostic of distant recurrence and predictive of chemotherapy benefit.3,4,5 The test has played a pivotal role in personalizing care, de-escalating treatment, and empowering an estimated 1.6 million patients6 around the world with the option to potentially avoid unnecessary treatment.7

That number now includes Kalpa. With her low recurrence score, Kalpa chose to forgo chemotherapy. Empowered with that knowledge, she and her care team had what they needed to create a personalized treatment plan that was right for her.

From clinical evidence to her own experience, Kalpa grew to trust the Oncotype DX test and the company who made it. That trust also shaped how Kalpa approached another important healthcare decision: how she would screen for colorectal cancer (CRC).

A trusted option for CRC screening

“The Oncotype DX test has helped me so tremendously,” Kalpa said. When it was time to screen for CRC, she thought, “I'm not going to get a colonoscopy. I will use the Cologuard test.”

The Cologuard^® test is a prescription-based test indicated for people 45+ at average risk for CRC. The noninvasive stool-based screening test can be completed at home and sent to a lab for results. It is sensitive enough to detect colorectal cancer even in early stages, which is important for improving patient outcomes.8 When CRC is caught in early stages, it’s treatable in 9 out of 10 people.9*

Fortunately, Kalpa’s result from the Cologuard test came back negative. She felt such relief.

“These tests give you clarity. They empower you,” she said. “It's truly like bringing light to the cancer journey.”