Hallmark actress Yan-Kay Crystal Lowe, 44, has been diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer, a journey she described as “scary, strange, and humbling” in an essay published by PEOPLE on Friday.

The Canadian actress, a mother of two, first found a large mass in her right breast in February, the essay noted. However, initial tests, including a mammogram and an ultrasound, did not detect any abnormalities. After the mass grew to 10 centimeters and other symptoms appeared, she underwent a biopsy.

“Three days later, my G.P. called to say I had invasive carcinoma in one of the ducts,” Lowe wrote. “I still remember getting off the phone, curling up into a ball, and just bawling.”

In August, she received the official diagnosis of stage 3 invasive ductal carcinoma, a type of cancer that begins in

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