The following post was written by Jody Schoger. Jody is a breast cancer survivor and now an active advocate in the fight to raise breast cancer awareness and find a cure. Please read her blog to find out a little more about this amazing woman and what you can do to help her or join the fight yourself. We’d like to thank Jody for contributing this and assure you that it’s full of excellent information that every person with boobs should have.
Toward the end of September, when you start drooling at the thought of candy corn, stop right there. Before anyone sees you, buy every last bag from your local grocery, then quick like a bunny, turn and run in the other direction. You are about to be surrounded by something bigger than candy corn, Halloween, and Thanksgiving all rolled into one: the Pepto-Bismal pink cloud of breast cancer awareness.
October is here. If by some strange gyration, you end the month without shelling out for yogurt with the pink lids, pink lingerie, ‘special edition’ lipstick, boots or even – heaven forbid – a Pink Collector Barbie, then you will have avoided the immense emotional tug of cause marketing. Congratulations! I’m bothered by much of the hype myself and, along with 2.5 million other women in the United States, I’m a breast cancer survivor.
At first the pink ribbons seemed innocuous enough to me. If you can forget the dippy tune, initially the “tie a yellow ribbon round the old oak tree” campaign was a way to keep Americans mindful of POW’s in Cambodia and Viet Nam. Since then we’ve gone from a single color to a technicolor rainbow. There are so many different ribbons it’s easy to forget what the colors are all about in the first place.
Last Thursday an entire newspaper section – guess what color – from a community chain arrived in the driveway. Ads upon ads of “Breast Cancer Awareness” specials filled the pages. How much of that revenue actually provides an underserved woman with a mammogram is anyone’s guess. Worse yet, there were a few feature stories about survivors whose treatment – to me — seemed “over the top,” not to mention insanely expensive. There was only one solution.
“Oh, Good Bloggess,” I screeched, “I’m a breast cancer survivor. What can I do to help educate women on making good choices if diagnosed? Keep reading stupid, stupid, info.”
To those of you who don’t know, the good bloggess (unlike that other bloggess, the dirty one) Is the fairy godmother you never had. She WANTS to grant your every wish, especially if you are altruistic,
randomly perform acts of kindness, and have never murdered anything, including grasshoppers. She understands that women who have had breast cancer can, on occasion, become crazed.
So here come the facts first, sisters. Then I am going to extract a promise from you. For the next five minutes I’m going to ask that you try to forget all the hype, the boob jokes, the ‘crazy, sexy cancer’ talk. There’s nothing sexy about cancer or any illness that has the potential to knock women (and men) down in the prime of their lives. Because these are the stories you see, these are the stories you hear about. Some 40,000 women die a year from breast cancer. Yes, it can be and is a killer. There’s nothing sexy in chemo, or radiation or surgery or hormone therapy. A lot of it really sucks, in fact.
Here are a few things to keep in mind.
1) Facts.
On a yearly basis, more women die of heart disease than breast cancer. In fact, more women die of lung cancer (69,078) than breast cancer.
What makes breast cancer so difficult is that it IS the biggest killer of women aged 45 – 55, and both Hispanic and African American women continue to have higher mortality rates. This is a critical area of research.
Yes, one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer over the course of an 80-year lifespan. Another way, there is an 87.5% chance you won’t EVER get breast cancer.
And of the 192,000 estimated cases diagnosed this year, just 5% of them will be hereditary. Eighty percent of all cases will not have any signs of distant metastases (cancer in other parts of the body). This is how the five-year survival rates are close to 98%. That’s good news.
2) Mammograms aren’t fail proof. They can result in a “false-positive” or mistaken reading. This means you are called back and – after they peel you off the ceiling – you either have another mammogram or an ultrasound for a closer look. This happens. It is not the end of the world – it just feels awful for a short period of time.
3) Your “Body Protection Plan”
I read once that every woman faces a diagnosis of breast cancer each time she has a mammogram. If that is true, then I suggest you take this a step further. For Pete’s sake, we have fire drills, burglar drills, hurricane escape routes and checklists. Why not develop your own “Body Protection Plan?” Really. Take a few moments and map out some key factors should you have to face breast cancer and treatment decisions. I’ve included a short list of resources that are part of the process.
Take it from a veteran and:
1) Refuse to feel pressured – from anyone.
2) Designate a friend to help you gather facts. This person is essential. This person is the one who refuses nitrous and novacine at the dentist. She/he loves statistics and can explain them to you.
3) Get two or three opinions. In Houston we are fortunate to have two nationally-designated cancer centers. Right here. People come from around the world to go to MD Anderson. Believe me, I-45 is the pits but not impossible. With a multidisciplinary approach, the surgeon, oncologist, radiation oncologist and nursing staff all review your diagnosis and options at one time. If you are going to consider plastic surgery doing so from the start can save you tons of heartache later.
4) If your diagnosis is DCIS understand that treatment for DCIS is evolving and controversial. Insist on understanding what your risk, absolute risk and relative risk factors are. Yes, it’s harder to wade through more information. Realize you would do so for your children, then do so for yourself.
5) Divide and conquer. People will materialize from trees it seems, and from around every corner with offers to help. Let them help you! Let them love you, take you to the spa, or bring you hysterically funny movies! If the offer to bring food, tell them what you like. You’ll help them by doing so.
6) Finally, take all this information, print it out, have it laminated. Now put it in – OK — a pink folder and stash this in the freezer. Your husband or partner might think you’re nuts, but of course this will not be the first time.
I hope against all hope that you can leave your folder in the freezer. Mine is here in my office, I update it with new findings all the time. I support cancer organizations I believe in, and there’s a phenomenal community of survivors out here if you need us. Take care.
http://www.twitter.com/jodyms
Mom was right on the fruit and vegetables. Stock up! Your Mom may have missed the boat on processed foods — but you don’t have to. Plus, once you cut junk food from your diet you’ll feel better. Honest. Studies also point to the importance of Vitamin D in healthy cell functioning. If you skip dairy, please ask your doctor or a nutritionist what the best supplement for you might be. 
