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Ten years ago, Nina, a Lake Winnebago resident, was diagnosed with a rare form of breast cancer that led to a partial mastectomy followed by radiation treatment at Saint Luke’s Hospital of Kansas City.

Now, on the 14th anniversary of her diagnosis, Kelly, 43, is cancer free and grateful for the care she received at Saint Luke's East Hospital in Lee's Summit and Saint Luke’s Hospital of Kansas City.

While the mortality rate for breast cancer in the U.S. has significantly declined from its peak in 1989, incidence among younger women has steadily increased each year since 2001, according to the American Cancer Society.

Ten years ago, Nina Noe's dog supported her along her journey to beat a rare form of breast cancer.

According to the National Cancer Institute, about 40% of women have dense breast tissue, which makes it more difficult to find breast cancer early.

The 37-year-old Chillicothe wife and mother had two active teen boys, a full-time job, and had recently returned to college for to earn dual majors in business administration and organizational leadership. Then one day she felt a lump in her breast.