When A-B Tech Madison Director Sherri Davis, 58, learned that she had breast cancer, she vowed to be a model patient. During chemo, she drank more than her fair share of water each day, ate plenty of protein, and managed to avoid the biggest pitfall, becoming anemic. Naturally a positive person, Davis strived to search out the good around her.

Still, she showed up for her first chemo treatment at Asheville’s Hope Women’s Cancer Center feeling anxious. “It was scary,” she said. “I’d heard how awful chemo is.”

Davis’s chemo visits were spread out with one eight-hour round every 21 days for six months beginning in February of 2023. That first visit was the worst. Davis was accompanied by her two best cheerleaders, her mother, and her boyfriend, Mike. She dozed off and on beneath a warm blanket as four separate medicines made their way into her bloodstream. As Davis adjusted to the chemo routine, the visits gradually became less stressful. She even made friends with a young woman in her 30s who sat next to her reading the Bible while receiving chemo.

“The first time she came in, she hardly spoke to anyone; she was so scared to death,” Davis said. “The second time, we started talking about where we were from and what kind of cancer we had. It blossomed into a friendship.”

When Davis began to lose her hair during chemo, she chose to make the best of it by calling A-B Tech’s salon to book a haircut. “One of the students, Michele, started cutting and shaving, and she did a good job,” Davis said. “I thought it might be a good experience for her. When (the students) are out in the real world, they’ll probably have clients that will need this same experience.”

Davis chose to wear a baseball cap or bandana to cover her head. She worked off and on during chemo, teleworking if she felt sick to her stomach. Luckily, the chemo was successful in shrinking the lump in Davis’s left breast, but she still chose to have a double mastectomy followed by reconstructive surgery. “I did not want to have to go through that again,” she said. “Just remove them; get them out of there!”

During the two-month recovery period after her August surgery, Davis was home full-time for the first time in years. Her mom and Mike were her caregivers as her body gradually healed.

Davis finished immune therapy in 2024 and is presently not on any medication, though she has regular checkups with her doctor. She laughs when she says she’s happier now with her breast size having gone down two sizes.

Battling cancer has had a dual effect on Davis. She is more conscious now of the fact that something bad could happen at any time. However, she feels stronger in herself, like she’s capable of making it through whatever challenges may arise.

The Madison County native is quick to acknowledge she couldn’t have fought the fight alone. Throughout her journey, she leaned on friends at work as well as her church community at Marshall’s Laurel Branch Baptist Church, receiving regular calls and texts from friends. She felt immense peace knowing she was not alone. “They took care of me,” she said. “It was such a blessing that God brought these awesome people into my life – knowing even before I did that I would fight this battle."

Davis now feels called to help others who have gotten a recent diagnosis and may be feeling alone. “If anybody at the college is going through it and they need to talk, I’m always available,” she said. “I would love to support and talk to anyone, and it would be totally confidential.”