My Breast Cancer Journey

Here we are, almost a third of the way through October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and I want to remind you of two things. First, if you are a woman over 40, PLEASE make sure to get your annual mammogram. As a corollary, if you love someone who is a woman over 40, please remind her to get an annual mammogram. They save lives; I know.

Second, during October, we're donating 10% of sales of all fabrics in the Pink/Red/Purple Category to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. So go buy yourself something gorgeous, and know that you're helping further the cause of defeating this dreadful disease.

Now a personal story. You may be aware that I am a breast cancer survivor. Almost 10 years ago, I was diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer. I had no family history, and I had no risk factors. But there it was, a series of little calcifications in one spot on my mammogram, and the biopsy came back positive. 

The terror of diagnosis, the fear of leaving my husband a widower and my sons motherless, the anxiety of going through surgery, chemo, and radiation are as clear in my memory as they were when I was in the midst of it. But I survived, and here I am, 10 years later (touch wood).

I wrote a series of blog posts on my old blog about the chemotherapy experience. You can read them here:

Cancer, Chemo, and What I Wore Part 1 

Cancer, Chemo, and What I Wore Part 2

Cancer, Chemo, and What I Wore Part 3

Cancer, Chemo, and What I Wore Part 4

That was followed by 6 weeks of radiation, which was uneventful, though my skin was thoroughly irritated by the end. Here's a hint if, god forbid, you ever have to go through it: buy a small jar of Creme de la Mer cream. It really is a miracle.

So to reiterate, PLEASE, get your annual mammogram if you are of a certain age. And even if you are young, make sure to do a breast self exam once a month. The incidence of breast cancer in younger women is increasing at an alarming rate.