Recurring Cancer, Traumatic Injury and a Wound that Wouldn't Heal: Kymberlei's Story of WakeMed Care that Wouldn't Quit

Kymberlei Schmidt's breast cancer journey began in 2015 with Stage I breast cancer. WakeMed breast surgeon Lori Lilley, MD, FACS, performed a lumpectomy at Cary Hospital and referred her to medical oncologist Mark Leo Graham, MD.

Looking back, that first appointment set the tone for a doctor-patient relationship that would carry her through more than a decade of treatment.

"My initial thoughts about Dr. Graham were, 'Wow, this guy really knows his stuff,'" Kymberlei recalls. "He immediately reminded me of Bill Nye the Science Guy — energetic, knowledgeable and passionate about teaching."

She expected a brief 15-minute consultation during their first meeting. Instead, Dr. Graham spent nearly an hour explaining breast cancer, its different types and stages, available treatments and why each option mattered.

"At first, I wasn't sure why he was sharing so much information," Kymberlei comments. "Once we got to discussing my treatment choices, it all clicked. He wanted me to truly understand my cancer, so I could make informed decisions."

That approach has never changed.

"Dr. Graham didn't just tell me what the plan was; he partnered with me. He shared the latest research, explained why certain treatments mattered and made sure I was part of every decision. At every appointment, he provided a detailed summary of my diagnosis and treatment history, even showing me my scans and pointing out exactly what we're talking about."

By the end of that first visit, she understood what made his approach different.

"He wasn't overwhelming me — he was empowering me."

Three Recurrences and a New Diagnosis

Over the next several years, Kymberlei faced recurrence after recurrence.

In October 2023, her medical team discovered cancer in her lymph nodes. Around the same time in 2024, after mentioning occasional headaches to a surgeon unaffiliated with WakeMed, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a small brain lesion that was too small to biopsy. It was treated with a single dose of radiation, and she continues to undergo surveillance every four months.

More recently, cancer was found in her lungs, and her diagnosis officially became metastatic breast cancer.

Despite every setback, Dr. Graham remained a constant source of reassurance.

"He gave me the full picture, so I could clearly understand my treatment options and the reasons behind them."

Hope that Reconstruction Would be the Fix

After surgical removal of cancerous lymph nodes and second radiation therapy, Kymberlei was left with a significant hollowing in her armpit that Kymberlei describes as "the size of a baseball." Bras no longer fit comfortably. Clothing rubbed painfully against the area. Simple daily movements became constant reminders of everything cancer had taken.

In January 2026, she underwent reconstructive surgery through a plastic surgery center in Orange County, NC, hoping it would finally allow her to move forward. Instead, new challenges emerged. Within weeks, she noticed part of the incision wasn't healing. Concerned, she messaged that plastic surgeon.

On February 6, she was instructed to go to an emergency room affiliated with that doctor's health system, so a resident could evaluate the wound.

"At the time, I was also a caregiver for my mom. It was about a 40-minute drive to that hospital, and I expected I'd probably wait ten hours before being seen. I couldn't leave my mom alone that long."

Instead, she drove ten minutes to WakeMed Apex Emergency Department.

"I trusted they would provide efficient and compassionate care."

The emergency physician contacted plastic surgeon, who recommended packing the wound and following up Monday. At her follow-up visit, the care team repacked the wound, and she was instructed to continue packing it at home.

One Fall, a Domino of Setbacks

Just 18 days after reconstructive surgery, Kymberlei was walking her dog at a local park when she fell.

"I knew immediately my hand and ribs were broken."

Not wanting to leave her dog or cause a scene, she got herself up, drove home, dropped off her dog, told her mother where she was going and returned to WakeMed Apex Emergency Department.

She was diagnosed with a broken dominant hand and three broken ribs. She received X-rays, a temporary splint and a referral to Wake Orthopaedics, where she met orthopaedic surgeon Casey Jenkins, MD, on February 10.

"He and his team were wonderful," Kymberlie shares. "I was taken straight to X-ray, Dr. Jenkins came in shortly afterward, showed me exactly where the break was and recommended six weeks in a cast."

A technician soon returned carrying a fluorescent pink cast, so she could begin to heal.

While she was trying to recover physically, life at home was becoming even more heartbreaking.

"This is when my mom started telling me she was going to die."

Her son moved in part-time to help care for his grandmother while supporting his mother through an unimaginable season of illness, caregiving and grief.

Life Unraveling

By this point, Kymberlei wasn't just managing cancer. She was recovering from reconstruction, living with an open wound, healing from broken bones, caring for her dying mother, navigating hospice, grieving the end of her marriage and continuing to work.

"Emotionally, I was a walking zombie," Kymberlei admits. "It was my mind's way of coping with so much grief, crisis and illness."

Around that time, her primary care physician noticed she had visited the emergency department on consecutive days. The office called and insisted she come in for an emergency follow-up appointment.

Kymberlei believes that call changed everything.

The Team that Changed Everything

On February 18, she walked into WakeMed Wound Care in Cary and met Carrie McGroarty, PA-C, EdD, director of Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine.

"I arrived physically, emotionally and spiritually exhausted."

Carrie immediately recognized that Kymberlei needed more than wound treatment.

"It wasn't shallow listening," Kymberlei remembers. "She listened with her whole self. She made a commitment to me that she would do everything she could to help."

Carrie not only treated the wound but also contacted WakeMed's breast reconstruction specialists for guidance. With Kymberlei's permission, she then consulted with plastic surgery and arranged an appointment with plastic surgeon Minh Nguyen, MD, of WakeMed Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery. Kymberlei met Dr. Nguyen two days later, on February 20 at WakeMed Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery in Cary.

"I left that appointment knowing I finally had a clear plan — and that it was going to be okay."

A New Surgeon, A New Beginning

Those weeks were hard: "My mom was increasingly incoherent. The hospice nurse told us she believed Mom was beginning the transition toward death. It was nothing like what I experienced when my father died."

She remembers little besides moving between hospice visits and medical appointments. 

During one wound care visit, Carrie asked when surgery was scheduled. The next day, Dr. Nguyen's office called. Her surgery was scheduled for March 30 at Cary Hospital. Kymberlei knew Carrie's consistent follow-up moved her care along. 

She also appreciated Dr. Nyugen's direct demeanor.

"He didn't sugarcoat the severity of my diagnosis," Kymberlei explains. "But I trusted him."

Initially, imaging suggested that Kymberlei’s wound measured approximately four by nine centimeters. However, during initial debridement of her current wound, Dr. Nguyen discovered that the damaged tissue extended much farther than expected, resulting in a wound nearly nine by twenty centimeters. This was a known challenge following her prior reconstruction in previously irradiated tissue, as radiation can cause extensive life-long tissue damage and significantly impair healing.

During her hospitalization, an enlarged lymph node near her lungs was also discovered, which was biopsied and confirmed to be cancerous. With additional cancer treatment ahead, the goal of reconstruction was to achieve reliable healing as quickly as possible. Dr. Nguyen performed a latissimus dorsi flap, bringing healthy, nonirradiated tissue from her back into the irradiated wound to provide durable coverage and promote healing.

Coordination Without Delay

The day after her second surgery, Carrie stopped by during her lunch break to check on Kymberlei. During their conversation, Kymberlei mentioned that a recent computed tomography (CT) scan had revealed lesions on her lungs. Carrie immediately reviewed the images with Kymberlei before leaving the room to contact Dr. Graham.

Within about twenty minutes, a pulmonologist walked through the hospital door. He had spoken with Dr. Graham. A lung biopsy was scheduled the following day. Another wound surgery followed shortly afterward.

For Kymberlei, the speed and coordination were unlike anything she had experienced before. Everyone communicated, acted and cared.

The Road to Hyperbaric Support

After her discharge from the hospital, Kymberlei returned to WakeMed Wound Care to receive hyperbaric oxygen therapy to ensure complete healing prior to chemotherapy.

Kymberlei remembers, "Before that stage, I felt like I was living in a black hole. At WakeMed, I experienced something that felt human. Iva, the front desk coordinator for the WakeMed Cary Wound Center, greeted me at each visit; she called me 'sweetheart.' Everyone was kind and cheerful, despite my angst and confusion."

Kymberlei relished in care that felt deeply personal: kind, patient and attentive.

She received hyperbaric oxygen treatment, where patients are put in a sealed chamber to breathe pure oxygen at pressures two to three times higher than usual. This setup mimics the low pressure found in deep-sea diving, allowing oxygen to penetrate the bloodstream more effectively, especially in areas with poor circulation due to injuries or other problems. Oxygen is crucial for healing wounds since it supports cellular repair, collagen production and enhances the immune response, all of which are key for tissue recovery.

During hyperbaric oxygen treatment, Kymberlei met Laterese, who she describes as the backbone of the hyperbaric oxygen program. Laterese explained procedures, checked details carefully and even learned what movies Kymberlei wanted to watch — small gestures that made the treatments feel less frightening and more manageable.

Carrie also continued regular weekly check-ins, ensuring Kymberlei was receiving care, monitoring and loving support.

"The greatest privilege of being a physician assistant is the opportunity to connect and build trust with a patient who is experiencing a health challenge," McGroarty emphasizes. "Everyone who seeks my support is a unique, very special individual who deserves the very best comprehensive care. My goal was to give Kymberlei and all my patients honest, compassionate care, using all the resources available in the healthcare network I've built at WakeMed in my last two decades of service to this community. I find joy caring for people."

Treatment that Healed and Reenergized

For Kymberlei, the hyperbaric oxygen chamber became a turning point.

She found herself able to get through a day without needing a nap — something she hadn’t experienced during the earlier phase of treatment. After starting chemotherapy following wound care, she felt better than she had in years.

"With all that oxygen being poured into my blood vessels, I felt like a new person.”

Her wound is now completely healed.

WakeMed — a Place Where Hope is Found

Looking back over more than a decade of cancer treatment, Kymberlei credits many people with helping her survive. During one of the darkest seasons of her life, three members of her WakeMed team stand out as the anchors she desperately needed.

McGroarty advocated for her relentlessly. Dr. Nguyen worked hard to repair the devastating wound left behind by cancer treatment. Throughout every recurrence — from Stage I in 2015 to metastatic cancer years later — Dr. Graham remained the physician who empowered her with knowledge instead of fear.

"Dr. Graham promised to keep searching for treatments as long as something worked. That has given me hope," Kymberlei offers.

Dr. Graham is in awe of Kymberlei's attitude throughout her breast cancer struggled. 

He comments, "In my earlier years, the noted women's basketball coach Kay Yow was my longtime patient. One of her well-known aphorisms was, 'In life, we cannot always control what happens to us, but we can control 100% how we respond.' The determination that Kymberlei has shown demonstrates the spirit of Kay Yow’s response to adversity.”
 

Today, although she continues living with metastatic breast cancer, Kymberlei no longer feels she's fighting alone. She is surrounded by her WakeMed care team — a team that sees the whole person.

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About WakeMed Breast Surgery

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Welcome to Wake Orthopaedics where our orthopaedic surgeons and specialists offer the highest quality care for pediatric and adult patients. Our practices provide a full range of orthopaedic services including advanced diagnostic imaging, innovative treatment options, minimally invasive and traditional procedures, and rehabilitation services. Whether it be recovering from a broken bone, joint replacement surgery, a sports injury or a fracture – our goal is to get you back to doing the things you love.

About WakeMed Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery

WakeMed Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery is led by C. Scott Hultman, MD, MBA, FACS. The specialty department consists of our clinical team of board-certified plastic surgeons, physician assistants and our inpatient and outpatient care teams — each of whom is dedicated to delivering exceptional quality in the care of patients requiring plastic and reconstructive surgery. With extensive experience and a reputation for excellence, our team offers a full range of highly specialized medical and aesthetic care at several, convenient locations throughout Wake County.

About WakeMed Wound Care

WakeMed is dedicated to healing wounds, preventing lower limb loss and optimizing outcomes for our patients at our comprehensive Wound Care sites in Cary and Raleigh. If you or a loved one has a wound that is of concern or is not healing properly, we encourage you to visit the wound center for an evaluation.