What do a vegetarian, a People Magazine designated member of 2009's "Most Beautiful People," first-time pregnant mother, film, Emmy-award winning television, and Broadway star who first hit TV screens at the age of 3 months and ME have in common? Vegetarianism didn't stick with me. People Magazine has yet to discover me. I did pregnancy, three times, and I'm happy to report they're all grown and independent now. I have yet to make my television debut, but Oprah, if you're reading, I'm available tomorrow. No, Christina Applegate and I don't have a whole lot in common on the surface, but we have more in common on the inside than either of us would wish for - strong family history of breast cancer, BRCA gene mutation, and saline implants where our natural breasts once rested!
While I know all too well the anticipation and fear that Christina felt and just how difficult a decision it was to remove healthy breast tissue in an attempt to prevent breast cancer from claiming our lives, I cannot imagine facing a breast cancer diagnosis and undergoing mastectomies in the public eye. In August 2008, less than a month after the double mastectomy, rumors about her diagnosis were leaked to the press, forcing her to go public with her experience before she felt strong enough to talk about it. The following month, she attended the Emmy Awards as a best actress in a comedy series nominee, wearing a diaphanous blue Reem Acra gown that had been reconstructed at the bodice to conceal her missing breasts. "It was my coming out, I guess," she says. "I knew everyone would be looking. I just thought, 'Please don't cry, please don't cry, please don't cry.'"
She kept it together, and once she did start sharing, she found that words began to come more easily. "Now I can talk about the ugly parts of it without losing it," says Christina. She is now openly candid about her medical procedures and is using her celebrity status to help spread the word about early detection and preventative measures. Christina has launched a foundation, Right Action for Women, to fund MRI screening for high-risk young women who are uninsured or can't get their insurance companies to cover the expensive testing. "I found out that there was something wrong after my MRI," she says. "Had it not been for [the test], I don't know what would've happened." The organization has also given her a chance to connect with other survivors. Says Christina, "There's a real kinship when we meet. We hold each other tight because we know where the other has been - to hell and back."
Christina's story reminds me that although each experience is unique, whether we are 'thrivors' or 'pre-vivors' we are all united by our human spirit and drive to not just survive, but live. I applaud Christina Applegate for being so publicly open about this very private matter in order to help women know they are not alone in their personal struggles with cancer. Alone we survive, together we thrive.
While I know all too well the anticipation and fear that Christina felt and just how difficult a decision it was to remove healthy breast tissue in an attempt to prevent breast cancer from claiming our lives, I cannot imagine facing a breast cancer diagnosis and undergoing mastectomies in the public eye. In August 2008, less than a month after the double mastectomy, rumors about her diagnosis were leaked to the press, forcing her to go public with her experience before she felt strong enough to talk about it. The following month, she attended the Emmy Awards as a best actress in a comedy series nominee, wearing a diaphanous blue Reem Acra gown that had been reconstructed at the bodice to conceal her missing breasts. "It was my coming out, I guess," she says. "I knew everyone would be looking. I just thought, 'Please don't cry, please don't cry, please don't cry.'"
She kept it together, and once she did start sharing, she found that words began to come more easily. "Now I can talk about the ugly parts of it without losing it," says Christina. She is now openly candid about her medical procedures and is using her celebrity status to help spread the word about early detection and preventative measures. Christina has launched a foundation, Right Action for Women, to fund MRI screening for high-risk young women who are uninsured or can't get their insurance companies to cover the expensive testing. "I found out that there was something wrong after my MRI," she says. "Had it not been for [the test], I don't know what would've happened." The organization has also given her a chance to connect with other survivors. Says Christina, "There's a real kinship when we meet. We hold each other tight because we know where the other has been - to hell and back."
Christina's story reminds me that although each experience is unique, whether we are 'thrivors' or 'pre-vivors' we are all united by our human spirit and drive to not just survive, but live. I applaud Christina Applegate for being so publicly open about this very private matter in order to help women know they are not alone in their personal struggles with cancer. Alone we survive, together we thrive.
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