B.O.O.B.S

by Fisher, Ann Kempner

• ISBN13: 9781581823851
• ISBN10: 1581823851
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2004-05-01
• Publisher: Cumberland House

Summary

They are not a bunch of statistics. They are not a female group of "genetic mishaps." They are -- and still are -- the voices of everyday, modern women struggling to survive breast cancer. They share the same diagnosis, but are a quilt of different patterns and colors with ages spanning twenty-five years. Some of them are wives and mothers, grandmothers and great-grandmothers; some, single or divorced. Some were active in their careers; others, retired or no longer able to work. They have different religious beliefs. They have different occupations, lifestyles, and values. Even their breast cancer was diverse, varying from Stage 0 to 4, following separate courses of surgeries and treatments. No matter what their differences are, they are B.O.O.B.S! B.O.O.B.S., A Bunch of Outrageous Breast Cancer Survivors, share their personal experiences -- from the shocking diagnosis to surgery and beyond -- and the effect breast cancer has had on the women and the people in their lives. Brought together by The Wellness Community, a program devoted to providing cost-free psychological support to cancer patients and their loved ones, the ten women in this book believe strongly in the healing power of group therapy and peer sharing. In fact, some of them have become patient advocates and spokeswomen in a quest to make a difference in the lives of other women facing the disease that afflicts more than 200,000 women each year in the U.S. alone. Book jacket.

Table of Contents

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS	ix
INTRODUCTION	3	(6)
FLIGHT INTO THE UNKNOWN-DESTINATION: BREAST CANCER
by Beverly Flowers	9	(30)
Beverly, a flight attendant with American Airlines, is just about to board a plane on September 11, 2001, when she hears the devastating news of the attack on the World Trade Center. Ironically, two years earlier, on September 11, she received her own devastating news: a diagnosis of breast cancer.
FIVE-FOOT-SIX AND BULLETPROOF
by Beth Butler	39	(30)
For Beth, a divorced career woman who is self-sufficient and daring by nature, facing breast cancer is the biggest challenge of her life. In a support group she discovers she can reveal the fears that she cannot share with her family.
EYES ON THE PRIZE
by Selden McCurrie	69	(34)
Selden is a self-described "computer geek" turned medical militant. Years of caring for her ailing parents armed her with information and a steely attitude. Both served her well when she was diagnosed with breast cancer and faced a bilateral mastectomy and the decision of whether to have reconstruction.
HAPPY FIFTIETH BIRTHDAY...YOU HAVE BREAST CANCER!
by Robin McILvain	103	(30)
Looking forward to a new career and celebrating her birthday on New Year's Day, Robin's diagnosis of breast cancer arrives on her fiftieth birthday. It is the most unexpected diagnosis in a lifelong series of health challenges.
MAYBE IT WILL GO AWAY
by Marion Horton	133	(30)
When initially diagnosed with breast cancer seventeen years earlier, Marion did not choose reconstruction after a mastectomy. Now she deals with a new cancer in her remaining breast, as well as endometrial cancer. The present disease vividly demonstrates the contrast between breast cancer treatment then and now.
THE LONG BALD SUMMER
by Alice Cotter Feldman	163	(30)
Alice undergoes open-heart surgery to repair a faulty valve, learns her husband has prostate cancer, and then learns she has breast cancer. She courageously overcomes each with humor and gains a new perspective.
TEARS OF TRIUMPH
by Elena Tillan Santamaria	193	(30)
Elena has a mastectomy, acquires a new breast, and finds a new mission in life. She becomes an advocate for newly diagnosed patients, as well as a spokesperson for breast-cancer awareness in the Hispanic community.
HAVE CANCER, WILL TRAVEL
by Lorna Goldstein	223	(30)
Despite recurrent breast cancer (twelve years later) and subsequent uterine cancer, Lorna refuses to let her illnesses interfere with her lifestyle. She realizes that she is not dying of cancer, but living with it.
HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS-WITH CANCER
by Alice Rollo	253	(28)
The family's holiday season is devastated by news of Alice's breast cancer. Her Christmas gift is a new breast-and a new life. She now uses her experience to help other survivors.
THE WORST-AND THE BEST-WERE YET TO COME
by Sheryl Siegel	281	(38)
When Sheryl was diagnosed with cancer in both breasts, it brought about the most profound change in her life: from career to a renewed spirituality, from family and friends to her new family-a support group.
AUTHORS' ACKNOWLEDGMENTS	319	(8)
THE WELLNESS COMMUNITY	327	(2)
GLOSSARY	329	(6)
RECOMMENDED READING	335