Women are more powerful than what you may think, go through the impossible, and fight hard.

Miriam Reyes de Figueroa, a 69-year-old woman, survived breast cancer. Having been born, raised, married, and given birth to three children in her native Guatemala, she was diagnosed at age 45 while living in the state of  Virginia.

By the time they found her cancer, it was very advanced and had already spread. She underwent surgery and chemotherapy, yet it took longer than expected for the cancer to finally ‘go away’.

“I learned that you take for granted everything you have and your life. I started to think about why this happened to me and what will I gain out of it? It taught me to be a more humble, more loving, to be a better person and to get closer to God because he was the One Who saved me,” said Mrs. de Figueroa.

Having always had a strong faith, she was never feared death because she always knew that God was with her, and that she was never going to be alone. Her surgery was in April, chemo followed in May, and she finally finished treatment in October.

Fortunately, a few years later doctors declared her in remission or ‘cancer free’. She explained that no one is ever cancer free because cancer cells will still remain in the body.

“I would like to tell the women going through this to have a positive mindset because it is so important when someone is going through cancer treatment. If you are a religious person, get closer to your faith. It is important to always be happy and when you are happy, you teach the people around you to be happy. The most important thing is to never up, to never question why this happened but for what reason. What message or lesson do you want to teach your loved ones,” she explained.

Today, De Figueroa leads a normal, happy life. Her faith had grown immensely as she is an inspiration for friends and family. With six grandchildren who love and cherish her, she has served as a sterling example of what it means to love, live, find happiness, and renew strength through her faith.