NFL Crucial Catch - October 25

About A Crucial Catch

The NFL, its clubs, players, the NFL Players Association and the American Cancer Society are committed to saving lives from breast cancer, and addressing the unequal burden of cancer in underserved communities.

Our campaign, "A Crucial Catch", in partnership with the American Cancer Society, is focused on the importance of annual screenings, especially for women who are 40 and older. Throughout October, NFL games will feature players, coaches and referees wearing pink game apparel, as well as additional on-field and in-stadium branding - all to help raise awareness for this important campaign. Much of the apparel worn at games by players and coaches, along with special game balls and pink coins will be auctioned off at NFL Auction, with proceeds benefiting the American Cancer Society’s Community Health Advocates implementing Nationwide Grants for Empowerment and Equity (CHANGE) program.

This year, all NFL markets will be supported with American Cancer Society grants funded by A Crucial Catch. Over the past three years, American Cancer Society CHANGE Grants, have educated 72,000 women on the benefits and importance of breast cancer screening with more than 10,000 free or low-cost screenings performed. This lifesaving work continues in 2014 and was expanded into all 32 NFL team markets reaching more of the women who need us most. Since the launch of the grant program in 2012, the number of recipients has consistently risen.

A Crucial Catch Day

On October 25, the American Cancer Society, grant-funded community health system partners, and the NFL are teaming up to launch its first nationwide, breast cancer event – A Crucial Catch Day — to provide breast cancer education and free or low-cost screenings within specific underserved communities.

About Grant Recipient Communities and Their Events

These grant-funded communities will conduct focused outreach, education and breast cancer screening for underserved women on Saturday, October 25: Atlanta, Georgia; Baltimore, Maryland; Brandywine, Maryland; Buffalo, New York; Charlotte, North Carolina; Cleveland, Ohio; Columbus, Ohio; Dearborn, Michigan; Denver, Colorado; Fort Worth, Texas; Greenfield, Massachusetts; Houston, Texas; Indianapolis, Indiana; Jacksonville, Florida; Kane County, Illinois; Kansas City, Missouri; King County, Washington; Miami, Florida; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Nashville, Tennessee; New Orleans, Louisiana; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Phoenix, Arizona; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Port Chester, New York; Riverside, California; Sacramento, California; Salinas, California; St. Louis, Missouri; St. Paul, Minnesota; Tampa, Florida.

"Hello My Name is Hope" campaign - for PK

It could be your mother, daughter, sister, best friend or … you.

This past week it was a friend of one of the communities I belong to. Her energy was calm and quiet; she smiled despite the wig and officiated the wedding for one of my best friends and his wife a month ago.

PK fought with dignity and strength, she fought for a long time and passed away quietly a few days ago succumbing to cancer.

Sometimes it’s the little things that help, Quill.com is trying to do their part, $1 for Breast Cancer Research with every “sticker” that is created. It takes no time and might even help you feel like you have done your part during October’s Breast Cancer Month.

Join their Facebook page at: http://www.facebook.com/quill .

Help someone you know, or someone you don’t.

Breast Cancer testing should be left in MY hands..

I am 36 years old. I have had two mammograms in my lifetime. Both times they found a mass.

The first one was solved by a biopsy which came back benign. The second, only a sonogram was needed.

My grandmother died in her mid – 30’s from breast cancer, leaving behind three small children. That death spiraled into, an evil step-mother, my mother becoming a young mother and me/my brother ending up into foster care and eventually adopted by loving families.

One person’s death threw an entire family onto a path that no one expected and that death was caused by something that has an option for early detection.

Mammograms: Self Checks: Anything a woman can do to find out in advance in the hopes to save their life; they should have the right/option to. I think that mammograms should be offered at 35 for all women; however the age of 40 for women who have no history is a compromise that I am willing to make.

• Self Breast examinations are FREE! They cost nothing but a little time. How can that be harmful? Because you might stress a little when you go to your doctor and say, “I feel something abnormal”. Isn’t that better than hearing the words, “We found cancer, and it’s too far along to do anything about?” How DARE this group come along and try to tell people that the examinations are non-productive? Yes, we might not know there is something there just by the feel of our fingers, but at least we are doing something. At least we are in control of OUR lives and OUR bodies.

This report information was taken from Digital Journal

“The report on their findings was published in the Nov. 17 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.

The report concludes that mammograms reduce the breast cancer death rate by 15 percent. However, this benefit must be balanced against the potential harm or risk. The New York TImes reports that the risk of harm is too great for women 40-49 to make the test beneficial for that age cohort:

Those [potential] harms loom larger for women in their 40s, who are 60 percent more likely to experience them than women 50 and older but are less likely to have breast cancer, skewing the risk-benefit equation. The task force concluded that one cancer death is prevented for every 1,904 women age 40 to 49 who are screened for 10 years, compared with one death for every 1,339 women age 50 to 74, and one death for every 377 women age 60 to 69.

For women over 49 the report recommends that mammograms only be done every second year rather than annually.

The Times notes that a false positive can create extreme anxiety and lead to other intrusive and ultimately unnecessary procedures such as biopsies. It also states, "mammograms can find cancers that grow so slowly that they never would be noticed in a woman’s lifetime, resulting in unnecessary treatment." “

Give me the week of anxiety, I’ve already had one biopsy and came out if it with nothing more than an upset stomach from the worrying. Even if the cancer grows slowly and would never be noticed, let ME have the choice on what I want to do with it. Because we never know what will grow slow or fast. I am not willing to put my life in the hands of the cancer; I want to make the choice for ME and MY family.

I want to fight breast cancer with an arsenal of weapons.

It is my body, my kids that will be left without a Mom, my siblings left without a sister.

I will continue to get mammograms every year and continue to get that knot in my stomach every October knowing its coming up. At least I know that I’m putting my best foot forward and taking control of my destiny.

This year I will walk again to help raise money to fight breast cancer, Want to join Team Pink Lily? I will be putting up the link sometime in 2010!

Thank you to the Colorado Breast Cancer doctors, American Cancer Society and the Susan G. Komen Foundation that are continuing to recommend mammograms at the age of 40.

Wordy Wednesday - Reason behind my silence

Every October I get a little anxious, it’s time for the yearly mammogram.

Last year I got the call, This year I thought I was free and clear, in fact, I thought about skipping a year in between them, I am only 36, I don’t need them every year…. Right?

“Suzanne, this is the Woman’s Clinic, the radiologist found a mass and would like you to come back in for another Mammogram and Ultrasound”

Dammit…

Laila and Eddie came in Friday morning, what was 4 days going to change right? So I made the appointment for Tuesday and enjoyed the weekend with my dear friend and her boyfriend.

Tuesday was a mess (anyone who knows me realizes how much I HATE Tuesday’s. Yesterday was hands down one of the worst Tuesday’s in existence) full of stress and angst.

I went in mid afternoon, got my robe, grabbed my Blackberry to stave off boredom and got radiated. Three mammogram films, then an ultrasound and finally 20 minutes of waiting to hear what they had to say.

“You have an abnormality on your films; however it is not a lump or a mass. Come back in 6 months and we will take another look to make sure it doesn’t get denser.”

YAY!!

Another year, another mammogram passed and now I can continue on with my life. I can raise my kids, love my boyfriend, and throw snowballs from the hillside. I feel like every year my life gets put on hold for a few weeks until this passes.

However, don’t get my minor complaining wrong. It is better than months of undergoing chemo/radiation, or spending weekends sleeping because the medication is making me sleepy. If something happens… I will catch it in time. If something springs up my radiologists have prior films to go off of and will be able to catch it in time so I can watch my children grow.

My quest for you…. Go…. If you have a history of it in your family, start going at 35. My doctor always writes me a note during my yearly so I can go, right after I get my pap to test for cervical cancer. Get tested, you have to get beyond any discomfort or fear, it takes such a limited amount of time, and to go another 365 days of health… it’s worth it…

Boobies Week! October 9-16th

I knew I had been adopted for as long as I could remember.

I was 2 1/2 when they brought me home.

I was 14 when I found my biological brother, we started looking for our family.

I was 24 when we found my biological father.

I was 25 when we found my biological mother.

What did we find out?

Lots of things, enough to fill a book or two, however one of the most important was our medical past, our genetic makeup. We had one huge thing to worry about... Cancer.

My maternal grandmother was 35 when she died from breast cancer, leaving behind three young children.

My aunt had it and she was in her 30's when we found out. I never knew what happened to her.

Now here I am, 35 and wondering what to look for. What are my signs? Will my doctor notice them? Can I trust her to understand my fear of leaving my little ones behind?






So, it's time I do my research.

The most common risk factors:*

• Sex. The highest risk factor for breast cancer is being female; the disease is about 100 times more common among women.
• Age. The risk of breast cancer increases as a woman grows older. The risk is especially high for women age 60 and older. Breast cancer is uncommon in women younger than age 35, although it does occur. There is some evidence to suggest young African American women are at greater risk for breast cancer than young Caucasian women.
• Personal History. Women who have had breast cancer and women with a history of breast disease (not cancer, but a condition that may predispose them to cancer) may develop it again.
• Family History. The risk of developing breast cancer increases for a woman whose mother, sister, daughter, or two or more close relatives have had the disease. It is important to know how old they were at the time they were diagnosed.
• The Breast Cancer Genes. Some individuals, both women and men, may be born with an "alteration" (or change) in one of two genes that are important for regulating breast cell growth. Individuals who inherit an alteration in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene are at an "inherited" higher risk for breast cancer. They also may pass this alteration on to their children. It is very rare. Scientists estimate that only about 5-10 percent of all breast cancers are due to genetic changes. One out of two women with these changes are likely to develop breast cancer. Women with a family history of breast cancer are encouraged to speak to a genetics counselor to determine the pros and cons of genetic testing.
  
  The next 5 risk factors all involve estrogen, a hormone that naturally occurs in men and women. However, at the time menstruation begins, women start to produce larger amounts of estrogen and will continue to do so until they reach menopause. Estrogen appears to play a key role in breast cancer. Although estrogen doesn't actually cause breast cancer, it may stimulate the growth of cancer cells. Estrogen-related risk factors are:
  
  
• Having an early menarche (first period or menstrual bleeding). Women who begin menstruating before age 12 are at increased risk of developing breast cancer. The more menstrual cycles a woman has over her lifetime, the more likely she is to get the disease.
• Having a first pregnancy after age 25 or 35. Although early pregnancies may help lower the chances of getting breast cancer, particularly before the age of 25, these same hormonal changes after age 35 may contribute to the incidence of breast cancer.
• Having no children. Women who experience continuous menstrual cycles until menopause are at a higher than average risk.
• Use of Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT). Based on the Women's Health Initiative Study (2002), women do appear to have an increased risk of breast cancer while they are on HRT and a short time thereafter, compared to those who have never used postmenopausal HRT. This is based on a study of 16,000 healthy postmenopausal women aged 50 to 79 who were taking either estrogen plus progestin as HRT or a placebo (an inactive pill).
• Use of Oral Contraceptives (OCs) and Breast Cancer. Current or former use of OCs among women ages 35 to 64 did not significantly increase the risk of breast cancer. The findings were similar for Caucasian and African-American women. Data also show that former OC use does not increase the risk of breast cancer later in life.

*information taken from the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month website

What can I do?

Get tested early.
Exercise.
Watch my alcohol intake.
Watch my fatty intake.
Eat healthier.

For my children... I think I can work on all of these, I plan on seeing them marry, have fat little babies that I get to spoil.

Now.... go to Boobicon and make a picture... create a quote. Let the world know that you are going to be "checking" during Boobies Week October 9-16.

What if....

.... You knew it was your time?

If you were sitting in a bed with crisp, cold sheets and the sad eyes of your doctor telling you...

"There is nothing we can do." and "I am so sorry."

You go home and start writing letters, making phone calls, cleaning out drawers and making plans for your passing.

I wouldn't want to write letters or make phone calls or clean out my life.

I wouldn't want to say goodbye over 1000 miles away from my childhood friend, Mandy OR tell my aunts and uncles in New York that I will never see them again.

This story is what I would want... the laughter, the tears, the memories... I don't want a funeral of people crying in a stark building. I want the air hitting their face and feeling ME around them.

Before I go, if I am blessed enough to know the end is coming... I want to dictate MY ending, dictate MY wishes... and depart this life on my terms... It's my last rebellion.

Someone's little Sweet Pea....

I fell into a strange funk tonight.

I was tired, hot and have a lot of things weighing on my mind.
-Money, teenagers, boyfriend, future, ACTs, SATs, college, parents-

And then I ran across Hannah. This is a 10 year old girl who is fighting breast cancer.
This 10 year old girl has had a mastectomy already.

I am done being tired and hot.... it's not that bad.

The things I am stressing over are not that bad. At least I am not sitting by my daughter at night wondering if I will ever walk her down the isle or witness the rosy cheeks when she shows me her first child.

Please keep Hannah in your thoughts, keep her high on your list of people you give a virtual hug to. She and her family can use the kind words, she is strong, and amazing, and next year, you better believe she will be on my list for the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk.