Cancer of the breast is the most common form of cancer among women, with an estimated 182,000 new cases and 58,000 deaths from the disease in the United States in 2016. It is also the second most common cause of death from cancer, after lung cancer. Breast cancer can be found early through a routine check-up. The only way to confirm a diagnosis of breast cancer is through a biopsy; however, certain signs and symptoms may indicate a problem that requires further investigation by a doctor. White was born on January 26, 1824, in Talbotton, Georgia. She was the third child of John and Mary (née Patton) White. Her father was a farmer and her mother was a housewife. When she was about nine years old, her family moved to Columbus, Ohio. Here she met Benjamin Groomer, a lawyer. In 1845, the couple married and had three children. When her husband died in 1847, Portia took care of her children while working as a legal clerk. In 1852, she married Dr. Joseph Durrett Jr., who was five years her senior. They had one son together before he died in 1857.