Letter: Every Month is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Dear Charlotte:

Most people think breast cancer awareness month starts and ends in October.  But for the thousands of people like me who are living with metastatic breast cancer, EVERY month is breast cancer awareness month, the month of October just happens to be more difficult for me because it is a reminder that awareness wasn't enough.

If there’s one thing I wish people knew about my metastatic breast cancer experience, it’s how frightening it is to realize that my life will most likely be cut short because of this disease – no amount of treatment can make it go away – there is no cure.  As hard as my original diagnosis in 2009 was, it does not compare to how devastating my stage IV diagnosis was for my family and me this past July – our lives are forever changed.

In October 2009, the U.S. Senate and House voted to support the designation of October 13 as a National Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day.  The point of those proclamations was to draw attention to the needs of the metastatic breast cancer community.

October 13 isn’t about general breast cancer awareness it’s about acknowledging the distinct needs of people who have the advanced, incurable form of breast cancer.

Metastatic breast cancer claims 40,000 lives annually in the U.S. As one of 155,000 U.S. people living with metastatic breast cancer, I have a vested interest in educating people about this incurable disease and urging them to support research that helps people with advanced breast cancer live longer.
For more information, visit mbcn.org (Metastatic Breast Cancer Network).

Sincerely yours,

Rebecca del Galdo

Wheaton