My beloved mother heard the terrible “C” word from her doctor and then endured her bout with ovarian cancer for 10 long and yet oh-too-brief years. My sister, Vicki, who next received a terrible diagnosis, died of breast cancer within two short years of its onset. She felt a “plum pit” under her arm and blew it off as nothing while keeping her fear close to her chest, pardon the pun!

 

These were two heartbreaking losses in what seemed a whirlwind of death in my family. I would practice grieving more times than one should.

 

Although I am the middle of five children, I have now lived longer than any of my siblings to the ripe old age of 49. In fact, I’m the oldest person in my entire extended family!

 

After Vicki’s death, I contacted one of the first physicians to offer the BRCA gene test. Scared but steady, I decided to proceed. This was before genetic counseling was required so I received that nice little letter in the mail that said POSITIVE. What to do next?

 

Off to interview the physicians-I went to four, and then I found Dr. William C. Wood of Emory in Atlanta. He went on to find something no one else had-THYROID CANCER. Agh! Later,, Dr. Wood suggested an oopherectomy (removal of the ovaries) and for us to monitor my breasts for the next few years. I played by his rules for a while but when I turned 48, which is one year past my brothers age when he died, I started getting nervous about my breasts.

 

I found the Facing Our Risk website and began to query…Women are free to share experiences on line and also talk “off line” about personal challenges. In the end, all that mattered was creating a new beginning. And so, in hopes of saving my own life and preventing what could lie ahead, I voluntarily underwent prophylactic double mastectomy. It was scary, but I’d done plenty of research and FORCE was instrumental in helping me along the way. I interviewed others who made the same choice, viewed pictures on our site and attended quarterly meetings. There is even SHOW AND TELL which really helped me SEE that life goes on after mastectomy and femininity prevails!

 

Although the process was long and not free of pain, the pain that I experienced is nothing compared to the hope I feel for a long future. My son, David, is 26 and I can now look forward to holding my grandkids one day. As for femininity, I’ve learned that there’s a whole lot more to that than how I look. During this whole process, I’ve gotten to know myself pretty well and now I genuinely understand that what I have to offer the world has nothing to do with my cup size.

 

FORCE helps to inspire women AND men, who are ordinary people like me, to take charge, do research and be proactive to beat the odds that are stacked against us. I join FORCE in asking for YOUR help to bring women like me the comfort and knowledge to make decisions based on facts.

 

We’ve grown up hearing the old adage, “Life goes on,” but I have a neon news flash: life does NOT go on. We have to work at it-we have to band together and fight! We have limited time on this earth in which to make our mark, to share stories with others (Tell them! Write them!), and to create memories through love and our experiences.

 

Please help FORCE continue to bring women like me a renewed future!