Breast Cancer Awareness Month: More Than Just “Thinking Pink”
2020 has been a year of constant change and adaptations, one thing remains the same and that is October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. In my work line, October is one of the busiest times for us with the Louisiana Breast and Cervical Health Program (LBCHP). Although our program shares its mission on the importance of Breast Cancer awareness year-round, October brings about the sense of wanting to know and do more within communities. Our program receives many requests from community organizations for our program to attend events during October. During this month, we see sports teams, organizations, church groups, and many others who believe in the cause donned in pink, the color that represents breast cancer. But how do we look outside the box and begin to do more than just “think pink”?
For me, this subject is personal because it exposed my own thought process of “thinking pink.” My best friend passed away at the age of 42 from breast cancer. As she went through her journey, she was sustained by her family and friends with emotional support, financial support, and gentle but strong love…. and of course, we wore pink, A LOT. Pink became the focal point of how we felt we should support her, especially during hospital visits, community events, and fundraisers. These were all fantastic ways to show our support and increase awareness, I believed. Nevertheless, none of what we did, saved her life. Maybe it was the feeling of guilt that I didn’t do enough to help her or that she passed away within two years of being diagnosed. After her passing, I realized that actually I may have missed the mark. I knew about the cause but not the details behind it. I knew then that I needed to go beyond “thinking pink”. I needed to get to the core message of the color’s background that was connected to the cause.
You see, my friend had never had a mammogram; she wasn’t a fan of going to the doctor because she was always afraid of hearing bad news. She didn’t tell us until a few weeks before she passed that she had felt a lump in her breast years prior, but her fear outweighed her health. Toward the end of her journey, she urged us not to do what she had done; to listen to our bodies because she hadn’t, and that, of course, became her biggest regret. More knowledge could have played a significant role in saving my friend’s life. This led me to realize I needed to get back to the women in my community and do more messaging about breast cancer and its components. Everything came full circle since being a part of LBCHP because I’m able to do just that as a Community Navigator.
My challenge to the readers of this blog is to do more than just “think pink.” Go out into your communities and promote the importance of being screened regularly. Ensure that the women in your lives are being screened accordingly, encourage them to listen to their bodies, and wear pink too if they choose…just be sure to share the message that goes along with the color.
By Denise Cox, LBCHP Community Navigator