Breast Cancer Still Kills Too Many

There are many startling statistics about breast cancer, but it only takes one heartbreaking story to really drive the point home. The disease is the second most common type of cancer death for women. And although more women are surviving the disease compared to 10 years ago, it still destroys too many lives.
Florence Williams, or Flo, as she was also called, died early in the morning on Sept. 29 of breast cancer.
I was honored to attend Florence’s wedding in March of this year.
It was a beautiful ceremony held in a ballroom at a hotel in Elk Grove. She married Michael Davis, whom she met while living in the Bay Area. He knew she had Stage IV breast cancer, but wanted to commit his life to her and her children.
When I spoke with Flo’s daughter, Iesha, on Friday, Sept. 24, she told me that her mother was not coherent and didn’t have much longer to live.
“Her main thing now is ‘don’t give up’” Iesha said on Friday.
But unfortunately Flo’s strength didn’t beat the cancer.
Nearly 40,000 women will die of breast cancer in the United States in 2010.
I know there are many survivors around the world, in the nation and in Elk Grove too. There are also those who are going through treatment. We see them at the grocery store, at work functions and at the gym. Some wear bandanas on their heads because of the chemotherapy. Many are tired, emotionally overwhelmed, but still have to work and stay strong for their families and for their own emotion well-being.
When I spoke with Elk Grove resident and Executive Director of the Elk Grove and Stockton eWomenNetwork chapters Karen Penfold at the Relay for Life in May, which benefits the American Cancer Society, she told me the gamut of emotions someone faces when they are diagnosed with breast cancer can only be comprehended by another survivor.
Penfold conquered her cancer, as well as Half Dome, late this summer.
Breast cancer never scared her, she said to my amazement.
“It’s a really difficult thing to go through, obviously,” she said. “It can be scary, but I personally was never terrified.”
She placed her faith in Christ and trusted Him, she said.
Karen’s friend Shannon Crawford organized the Half Dome hike for 25 women, including Karen, to celebrate her recovery from breast cancer.
Karen had made the trek in the past, but “this time it had so much more meaning to it,” she said.
Anna Starr, owner of The Yarn Shoppe in Elk Grove, also beat breast cancer.
Starr said she would like to see more studies done on healthy eating in relation to breast cancer diagnosis and survival.
Her grandmother, who is almost 100 years old, grows her own produce. Starr said she thinks that helps keep her spry and appearing half her age.
Despite all the support breast cancer sufferers receive from their families and communities, there are some organizations that aim to make a profit from donations.
In recent years the number of retailers selling pink products in support of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month has skyrocketed. From gym bags to kitchen gadgets to shoes- October is the month to buy pink.
Yet not all products are labeled with the exact amount that will go towards fighting breast cancer.
The Breast Cancer Action group, a nonprofit based out of San Francisco, encourages consumer education when it comes to purchasing products with the pink ribbon with their Think Before You Pink campaign.
The nonprofit has already reprimanded a yogurt company for offering a measly donation for saved yogurt lids, and also encouraged the company to discontinue the use of rBGH (bovine growth hormone), which has been linked to breast cancer.
Karen said as a breast cancer survivor she is weary of the “epidemic” of products labeled with pink ribbons.
“As a breast cancer survivor, I personally start to feel like the pink ribbon is sometimes being used in a selfish way for companies to make a profit,” she said.
The campaign does bring awareness, she added, but it shouldn’t be misused for “marketing opportunities that don’t necessarily benefit breasts cancer survivors and patients.”

During treatment and recovery, it’s essential to listen to your own needs.
One of the most vital steps to recovery is being kind to yourself, said Karen and Penfold.
Below is a list of recovery tips and suggestions from Anna Starr and Karen Penfold.


Recovery Ideas from Karen:
Stay as active as you can through the process
Accept support and help from others
Be very, very kind to yourself- get extra sleep, get massages, get emotional and spiritual counseling
Have a new or celebratory goal
Make it a priority to have a healthy and positive lifestyle
Take time for self reflection, prayer, spending time with people that bring you joy
Become involved in a support group

Recovery Ideas from Anna:
Knitting
Making sure that you do something special for yourself once a week is really important- pedicure or a massage or a facial.
Allow yourself some time for healing
Journal- Anna was skeptical a first, but said she found healing it in.
Laugh. “You get one deck of cards and that’s it,” she said. “It’s just not worth spending time pouting or fretting or regretting. You have to laugh and enjoy every moment.”