Search Results for: blog the theif who stole my mother breast cancer strikes

Why You Might be Getting a Phone Call from Ellen DeGeneres

The next time your phone rings and you hear Ellen DeGeneres’ voice on the other end don’t hang up. It’s not a joke. (Unless you have a crazy cousin who likes to impersonate the comedienne.) DeGeneres has teamed up with vitamin maker One A Day to record a series of phone messages urging women to fight back against breast cancer. The messages can be delivered by online request to concerned loved ones who may or may not be at risk for the deadly disease. The popular daytime talk show host says her goal in recording the messages is to encourage … Continue reading →

Star Medical News–Dorothy Hamill’s Cancer Scare and Poppy Montgomery Pops Out a Baby Boy

She is the legendary figure skater that I have adored since I was a child. And I freely admit that like millions of other little girls I too made my hairdresser give me her trademark wedge haircut after she won the gold medal at the 1976 Olympics. Which is why it is with great sadness that I learned Dorothy Hamill is battling breast cancer–the same insidious disease that has ravaged the lives of millions of families around the world, including my own. The 51-year-old former Olympian issued a statement yesterday and revealed that her prognosis is “favorable,” though she said … Continue reading →

The Day a Lump Entered My Marriage – Part I

For National Breast Cancer Awareness month, I thought I’d share an experience that affected Wayne and I deeply. The Find In 2001, I kept experiencing a series of sharp pains in my right breast. I first noticed it as I was raking leaves and then chasing Murph through them. Whenever I bounced, I’d feel a piercing stab through my nipple. In general that breast had seemed more tender than usual at the time, but any kind of jolting movement suddenly brought on that lancing hot sensation. I went inside and felt around the area and couldn’t believe what I was … Continue reading →

Is Your Diet Putting You At Risk For Breast Cancer?

Three years ago this month my mother was told she was cancer free. The good news came after major surgery, months of treatment and a complete overhaul of her diet. My mom’s breast cancer diagnosis acted as a severe wake up call to our entire family. As you likely know by now October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. What you may not know is that breast cancer affects over 200,000 women in the U.S. each year and about 40,000 women die annually from the insidious disease. As I mentioned earlier my mother is still with us, but as a … Continue reading →

Are You Thinking Pink Yet?

Have you been reading my “Think Pink” blogs? Have you filled your closet and your kitchen with a slew of new pink items yet? If not–—what are you waiting for. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month (and we are almost halfway through it), a time for us to celebrate our friends and family who are breast cancer survivors and to remember those who are no longer with us. It’s also a time to renew our energy to fight this insidious disease and support researchers who are working for a cure. In previous blogs I have featured a number of items … Continue reading →

For the Love of … Grandparents

One of the most tragic experiences of my life was my mother’s death. She died of breast cancer in 1994, and not only did I lose my mom, but my children and my future children lost a wonderful grandmother. There is a scene forever etched in my mind during my mother’s last days in the hospital, where I put Kyle, then a fifteen-month-old infant, into her arms. My mother didn’t have any hair as she lay in her hospital bed, and Kyle was just as bald. It was a very tender moment for all of us as she looked into … Continue reading →

An Aggressive Form Of Breast Cancer You NEED To Know About

Last month was Breast Cancer Awareness Month and while I concentrated on making you aware of the various retailers helping to combat the disease, I neglected to provide much information on the most aggressive form of breast cancer–many women have never heard of it. My mother is a breast cancer survivor. Two years ago she was diagnosed with Stage 2 cancer and underwent a series of treatments. Today she is still not 100%, but is on the road to recovery. Prior to her diagnosis I was aware of the disease (moderately), but knew nothing of the most aggressive form of … Continue reading →

Breast Cancer and Obesity Connection

While most people know that obesity is dangerous when it comes to diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, and stroke, many women are unaware that obesity has also been linked to breast cancer. The greatest risk indicator is for women that carry excess weight around the tummy and in the upper body region. Today, experts have identified that approximately 50% of all women (and men) with breast cancer are obese. One of the reasons this is believed to be true is that being able to identify lumps or abnormalities in the breasts of someone overweight is far more difficult than someone of … Continue reading →

Fat Cells May Prevent Cancer Fighting Mechanism

We have known for a long time now that obesity increases our cancer risk. New studies have found though that fatty tissue actually decreases the body’s ability to fight cancer. This study was performed in mice, and by decreasing their percentage body fat (with surgery or by running three to five km a day on training wheels) made them more able to fight skin cancer. Researchers at Rutgers University performing this study on mice suggest that fat cells could potentially be secreting compounds that counteract the body’s main anti-tumour defense systems. This system is called apoptosis and is pretty much … Continue reading →

“I Feel Like I’m Falling Apart.” 8 Ways to Cope with Overwhelming Stress

Anyone who has parented a special needs child understands it’s an all-consuming responsibility. As parents (and especially mothers) we have a tendency to pour our whole heart and soul into the special care of our son or daughter. Our instinct to nurture takes over, and we expect to be the “rescuer” who will make everything all better. We run ourselves ragged. We worry; we agonize. We don’t eat right and get enough sleep. And this eventually causes stress to overwhelm our bodies. Stress Took Over My Life In a previous blog I wrote about my own personal battle with stress … Continue reading →