Christina Applegate

I listened to Good Morning America yesterday on my way to work. Robin Robertson was interviewing Christina Applegate about her recent breast cancer diagnosis and treatment. I had planned on posting a link to the interview here but when I got to the GMA site I started reading all the viewer comments and decided to take a different approach.

For those of you who are fortunate never to have been diagnosed with breast cancer, there is this odd sisterhood of survivors that is just as dysfunctional as any typical family. Women bicker and complain and, strangely, compete over who's got it worse. Granted most of the women I've encountered both in real life and on online support groups have been lovely and compassionate but they don't tend to be as vocal.

The debate over the Christina Applegate interview was that she did breast cancer patients a disservice by proclaiming herself to be 100% cured. As some women who have had BC will tell you, you are never 100% cured because there is always a chance of the cancer coming back. They also refuse to call themselves survivors because you are not a survivor until the cancer is truly beaten and if it's never beaten, well then you are involved in a life long battle and thus always a breast cancer patient.

Women were also disappointed that Christina did not go into further details about what type of cancer she had and what stage it was. The reason behind this is the competitiveness that I mentioned earlier. My cancer was DCIS which was stage 0 or pre-cancer and an 'easy' cure. Yes, it is called the 'good cancer'. Women (or men) who are diagnosed with the 'good cancer' are not given the same respect and sympathy as those who have more aggressive cancer or are at a later stage. It's sad but true.

I wish Christina Applegate much luck and am sad that she has joined the 'sisterhood'. In the interview she mentioned that she was diagnosed in April and had a bilateral mastectomy three weeks ago. The cancer was only in one breast and, like me, decided to have them both removed. She said she didn't want to have to deal with going to the doctor every four months, which is the same reason I made my decision. She also said she'll be undergoing reconstruction over the next 8 months.

In my humble opinion, and based only on my experience and beliefs, I am a cancer survivor. Every day that I am alive means that I beat cancer. I will always have the fear that I will battle cancer once again but at the moment I am 100% cancer free and I am thankful.

If you've got a moment and a spare prayer, I invite you to check out Cari's blog. She is a breast cancer survivor who was blessed with a clean PET scan a week and a half ago. She has been suffering from migraine like headaches for the past month and when she saw a doctor she was shocked to discover what is most likely a cancerous tumor in her brain. She will be undergoing brain surgery Friday morning. Please pray that the tumor is just a little speckle of nothing important. Please pray that the mass is not breast cancer that has moved to the brain. Please pray that she recovers and spends the next 50 years being a fantastic mother to her children.

Thanks.