Breast Cancer Awareness Month is here! This special month is
punctuated with breast cancer awareness gatherings, fundraisers,
remembrances of those we have lost to the disease, and celebrations for
our survivors.
My mother died of cancer in 1992. My brother has had breast cancer
and I have had it twice myself. Four years after Mom died, I found a
lump in my breast during a self examination. I was diagnosed as having
an aggressive estrogen negative breast cancer and I was prescribed the
normal protocol of surgery, chemo, and radiation.
I was a jewelry designer when I was initially diagnosed with the
disease in 1996, and it was an easy decision to use my creativity to
raise breast cancer awareness. My first breast cancer design was the
breast cancer awareness ring and the breast cancer poem. I’ve lost
many loved ones to cancer and I know many survivors too—and so I
created the ring and poem to honor both those who have lost their lives
to the disease and also those who have survived.
My second breast cancer battle began in 2001 when I noticed a change
within my breast. Although my doctor was convinced that it was not
cancer, I thought it might be Paget’s Disease, a cancer that many women
are not aware of but should be. My doctor maintained, even after my
surgery, that she didn’t think I had cancer. She phoned a week later
with the pathology results—I had cancer, and it was Paget’s Disease.
My husband of 30 years became involved with my best friend during my
first cancer treatment, and he divorced me and married her. He
reasoned that I had changed as a result of cancer.
In retrospect, my ex-husband was right—I did change with cancer. The disease altered both my desires and my destiny.
Cancer has a unique way of releasing our spirits as it invades our
bodies. The disease intensifies our life’s measure because it marks
that precarious pause between life and death. Cancer causes
wobbly-kneed weaklings to become strong willed advocates, and it breeds
a compassion that we hadn’t previously known.
The American Cancer Society is the largest volunteer organization
within the world, and I’m proud that I’ve been part of the organization
for several years now. I began as a volunteer for the ACS’s Reach to
Recovery program and now I’m a Reach to Recovery trainer. All Reach to
Recovery volunteers must be breast cancer survivors and they must also
be certified through the ACS. The program matches newly diagnosed
breast cancer patients with breast cancer survivors based on age,
diagnosis, and other variables. The Reach to Recovery program gathers
vital data in the fight against breast cancer and it allows newly
diagnosed women to interact on personal levels with breast cancer
survivors. The interaction is tremendously important because we, as
survivors, represent hope for the newly diagnosed breast cancer
patients because we have survived. Please contact your local
ACS if you’re a breast cancer survivor to request information about
volunteering through Reach to Recovery.
Here are a few easy to-do’s for Breast Cancer Awareness Month:
- Form Boobie Squads to encourage friends to get their
mammograms and do monthly self examinations. (I found both of my
breast cancer through self examinations.)
- Watch for any changes within your breasts.
- Read about Paget’s Disease because most women aren’t aware of how
it manifests itself. Be your own advocate in the fight against breast
cancer. Remember that an early diagnosis means a better chance of
survival.
- Stay updated on the legislation regarding breast cancer and get involved in a grass roots effort.
Together, we really can make a difference.
God bless.
Mary Pat Boyd
This article was published courtesy of Chic Galleria
