Founder Story — Stefanie Matranga

In 2024, at 37 years old, my life changed in an instant.

One night after attending a Phoenix Mercury basketball game, I randomly felt a lump in my breast. At the time, my family was busy planning for the year ahead. We had trips on the calendar and adventures we were looking forward to. Travel has always been a big part of our lives.

Just a few days later, everything shifted.

I was diagnosed with Stage 3 Triple Negative Breast Cancer.

Instead of planning family adventures, my world quickly became centered around treatment. Over the next year I went through 16 rounds of chemotherapy, surgery, radiation, and immunotherapy, spending what felt like endless days at Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center—in appointments, receiving treatments, or recovering in bed.

At the time of my diagnosis, my children were just four and one years old. One of the hardest parts of the journey wasn’t just the physical toll of treatment—it was the moments I missed with them. There were days I was too sick to play, too exhausted to be present, and after surgery, I couldn’t even hold my son.

Cancer doesn’t just affect the patient—it affects the entire family.

But throughout the most difficult moments, we were surrounded by an incredible community. Friends, neighbors, and family stepped in to help in countless ways. Meals showed up at our door. Care packages arrived when we needed encouragement the most. Family members traveled in to help care for our kids while I focused on getting through treatment. Their support carried us through one of the hardest years of our lives.

One of the lowest points came after my 12th chemotherapy session. I developed pneumonia and ended up hospitalized for five days—over my birthday. Lying in that hospital bed, all I could think about was how badly I wanted to escape the hospital and simply be somewhere peaceful with my family.

After being discharged, my doctors paused my treatments for a few weeks so my body could recover. During that time, we escaped to Prescott, Arizona. Being surrounded by trees, fresh air, and my family gave me something I desperately needed—a mental reset. For a few days, I wasn’t just a cancer patient. I was a wife, a mom, and someone able to breathe again.

That small trip reminded me how powerful it can be to step away, even briefly, from the weight of cancer.

Later that year, my husband and I had a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Japan planned—something we had been looking forward to long before my diagnosis. Throughout treatment, I constantly talked about that trip with my doctors and nurses. It became my light at the end of the tunnel.

There were many moments when I thought cancer would take that experience away from me too.

But it didn’t.

Just two days after finishing my final radiation treatment, we boarded a plane to Japan. That trip was more than a vacation—it was a celebration of resilience, healing, and reclaiming joy after a year defined by survival.

It also made me realize something important.

My family was incredibly fortunate to have the ability to take that trip after such a difficult year. But many people going through cancer never get the chance to step away, rest, and experience the kind of mental reset that helped me so much.

That realization is what inspired The Journey Forward Project.

This nonprofit was created to give cancer patients and survivors the opportunity to experience a restorative trip after treatment—a chance to breathe, reconnect with loved ones, and remember that life exists beyond hospital walls.

Cancer takes a lot from people.

Our goal is to help give a small piece of joy, adventure, and hope back.

Because sometimes, the journey forward begins with simply getting away.