Duluth woman receives oncology care close to home

Andrea Huber found the lump by accident. During a trip to Florida, she hugged herself after exiting a pool – and there it was.

“I felt it on the right side of my right breast. It felt like a giant marble, and it was hard,” she recalled. “I knew right away it wasn’t something that should be there.”

After returning to Duluth and receiving an ultrasound and a mammogram, Huber was diagnosed with invasive lobular carcinoma in March 2023.

This rare cancer develops in the lobules, or the milk-producing glands of the breast. The cancerous cells eventually break out of the lobule and spread to the breast tissue, with the potential to spread further to the lymph nodes, spine, brain and ovaries.

Huber sprang into action. She researched treatment online and sought support online from other cancer patients.

She also had an important ally close to home.

Essentia Health oncologist Dr. Peter Kebbekus had lived next door to Huber and her family for several years. “He’s part Italian, my family’s Italian, so we talk pasta and wine,” Huber said.

After her diagnosis, Huber asked Kebbekus if he’d be willing to be her oncologist. He agreed, and he answered her questions and relieved her concerns about treatment, surgery and what to expect for future care.

“It’s been a learning curve for me, and it’s great to have Peter next door to bounce questions off of,” she said.

Due to the type of cancer and the tumor size, Huber and Essentia’s Dr. Nicole Flynn discussed the removal of Huber’s right breast.

Huber opted for a double mastectomy and reconstructive surgery to reduce the risk of cancer spreading or returning. “It was a good decision. The tumor was about 2.5 inches. It was quite shocking,” Huber recalled.

After surgery May 11, 2023, Huber recovered and returned to walking and gardening “relatively quickly.”

“Once I got the drains out, life got a little bit easier,” she said.

She completed radiation in August 2023. Huber meets with Kebbekus monthly for follow-up treatment and has started different medications, hormone blockers and an aromatase inhibitor.

And because hers is a hormone-responsive cancer, Huber elected to have an oophorectomy. “Getting your ovaries out is one less thing to worry about,” she said.

Reflecting on her experience, Huber is more than happy with the care she received at Essentia.

Flynn was determined to remove all the cancer and ensure Huber felt cared for and heard, and Kebbekus and his family continue to be close. Huber will walk with his wife on occasion, and Kebbekus and his daughter will sometimes dog-sit for Huber.

They’re close neighbors that Huber is very grateful to have in her life, she said.

Today, Huber walks daily. She enjoys golf, pickleball, cooking and entertaining.

To others, she stresses the importance of self-breast exams and being a champion advocate for yourself and your care because “cancer doesn’t discriminate.”

“I got my mammograms, exercised and ate healthy. I did all the right things, and I still got cancer,” she said.

A cancer diagnosis doesn’t necessarily mean a death sentence, she added, but it can mean living with a chronic condition you’re trying to not let control your life.

Next up for Huber is reconstructive breast surgery this fall. She said despite what has been, at times, a “horrific” experience, she aims to find humor wherever she can.

“Although it was traumatic, I’m going to have perky boobs at 50,” she said.