COLUMBUS, Ohio -- In the fight against breast cancer, there are those who stand on the front lines.
From patients to doctors and nurses, they know the strength it takes to beat the disease.
One woman turned the fight for her life into a new life.
Every day, every shift, Lesli Lehar is a step closer to her dream.
She's a nurse's aid at Doctor's Hospital and she knows what it's like to be the patient.
She had a routine mammogram in 2007 and quickly knew something wasn't right.
"When an army of nurses came in and said, 'We're sorry.' And then I realized, this could be bad," she said.
Lehar was diagnosed with breast cancer. She had a partial mastectomy and went through four months of chemotherapy. She was strong, but one day in the emergency room, Lehar broke down.
"I was there by myself and getting more scared by the minute and my nurse came in and I said, 'I'm having an I need my mommy moment.' And she just treated me so well," Lehar said.
Then she knew. She wanted to be an ER nurse.
"I know what it's like to be scared. I know the day you are in the ER is the worst day of your life and you need everything else to be better," she said.
So, Lehar quit her job -- more than 20 years with the U.S. Postal Service.
"While I make three times less than I did at the post office, I am 100 times happier," she said.
To obtain her nursing degree, Lehar is going back to school -- even through her cancer treatment.
"I don't recommend algebra, chemistry and chemotherapy. It's not a good mix. I carry a 4.0 (GPA) because I want this so badly and I don't think it matters that I'm almost 46 and still in school. There is a light at the end of my tunnel and it's going to be me making a difference in lives. It's worth it," Lehar said.
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