Breast Cancer Awareness Month

You probably know that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  If you're not, you will be by the end of the month.


This cause is one that is very dear to me.  I lost my aunt to this disease when she was younger than I am now.  A 42 year old woman should not die from breast cancer.  She battled the way she battled everything in life, head on.  She was an amazing woman and the world is a lesser place without her in it.


Right now I have two friends who are fighting this.  One is younger than I am, the other older, but the fight is the same.  And it is a fight that affects so many.  I have several friends who are survivors and I am so proud of them.

Statistics from Breastcancer.org.

About 1 in 8 women in the United States (12%) will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime.

About 39,840 women in the U.S. were expected to die in 2010 from breast cancer, though death rates have been decreasing since 1990. These decreases are thought to be the result of treatment advances, earlier detection through screening, and increased awareness.

In 2010, there were more than 2.5 million breast cancer survivors in the U.S.

About 70-80% of breast cancers occur in women who have no family history of breast cancer. These occur due to genetic abnormalities that happen as a result of the aging process and life in general, rather than inherited mutations.

How can anyone argue with this?  A cure needs to be found!!

My friend, Laura, and I try to do the breast cancer walk each year.  Both her mother and her sister has battled and won.  This puts her at great risk.  We both know how much awareness there needs to be.

The Susan G. Komen breast cancer walk is an amazing event.  When you see a mass of people, all wearing their race/walk shirts, all in support of cancer research, it is amazing.  Pink is everywhere you look, and the size of some of the teams that form are overwhelming.  When you look around you see "bibs" on people.  The have their race number on it, but most of them also contain at least one name.  The name is either someone they are walking in memory of or in honor of.  The number of names is beyond comprehension.  There is also a garden where you can hang a ribbon in honor or memory of a loved one.  Watching the ribbons blow in the breeze brings a harsh reality.


For Laura and me, it is a girls day.  We take the whole day for ourselves and just spend time together. It is the bonding time women need, along with a great day of self care.  This year, my schedule did not allow us to attend, so we decided to Sleep In For the Cure.  We paid our fee, just as if we were attending the walk, we just didn't go.  The money goes for the cause and we could still contribute, even though we couldn't be there in person.


Participate in a walk if you can.  It is a mind boggling event.  If you can't, consider doing the "sleep in" so the money still goes toward research.  


To all of you currently battling, or have survived the battle, you have my greatest admiration!  To those of you who have lost someone, you have my sympathy.  Cancer sucks!