Last week a few of us ladies got together to honor a good friend of mine, Lauren, and say "Ta-Ta to the Ta-Tas". Yes, you read it correctly. We toasted a big PEACE OUT to her upper portion. Let me explain..
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Lauren is about to embark on a courageous journey June 11th. Not only is this Lauren's journey, but her sister Elissa's as well. They are both enduring the exact same procedures a month apart from one another. My hope is that this post will broaden your awareness about the tests available for women who could genetically have an increased risk of being diagnosed with cancer. The goal here today is to not only gather prayers for Lauren and her sister, but to help educate women about the medical procedures insurance will cover if you happen to be tested BRCA positive.
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| Elissa on the left and Lauren on the right. |
In Lauren's own words:
"My story really begins back in 2007 when my
mother was diagnosed with an ovarian carcinosarcoma. My mother's side of
the family had never (in my lifetime) had any cancers and her diagnosis
seemed to be just a streak of terrible luck. She fought the disease
valiantly for a little over a year before quietly passing away in her
sleep at 5:43 a.m. on September 18th, 2008. It crossed my mind at the
time to be tested for a genetic mutation, but since we had no other family history of cancer, my doctor and I decided that it was probably not a genetics thing and put off testing.
Fast forward to October 2011: I got a phone call from my sister about a week after her visit to her OBGYN. She told me that she had been tested for a BRCA mutation and her test was positive. I was honestly shocked and immediately decided to get tested. I had to wait for my own genetic counseling appointment and then another 4 weeks to receive my results. On December 28, 2011, I received the phone call that set all of this into motion. I, too, was BRCA 2 positive.
On February 23, 2012, I had a preventive bilateral oophorectomy to remove my ovaries and fallopian tubes. This reduces my risk of ovarian cancer by 96%. On June 11, 2012, I will undergo a bilateral mastectomy and reconstruction at St. Davids Hospital in Austin, Texas. Having this surgery will reduce my risk of breast cancer to less than 10%. My risk prior to these surgeries was 50% for ovarian cancer and 87% for breast cancer.
I feel so blessed to have my wonderful husband and 3 daughters, along with friends and extended family, to support me through this journey. I have been given the opportunity to take control of my health. It is not always easy. In fact, most of the time it's down right scary, but if going through this gives me just one more day with my children than it will have been completely worth it!"
Fast forward to October 2011: I got a phone call from my sister about a week after her visit to her OBGYN. She told me that she had been tested for a BRCA mutation and her test was positive. I was honestly shocked and immediately decided to get tested. I had to wait for my own genetic counseling appointment and then another 4 weeks to receive my results. On December 28, 2011, I received the phone call that set all of this into motion. I, too, was BRCA 2 positive.
On February 23, 2012, I had a preventive bilateral oophorectomy to remove my ovaries and fallopian tubes. This reduces my risk of ovarian cancer by 96%. On June 11, 2012, I will undergo a bilateral mastectomy and reconstruction at St. Davids Hospital in Austin, Texas. Having this surgery will reduce my risk of breast cancer to less than 10%. My risk prior to these surgeries was 50% for ovarian cancer and 87% for breast cancer.
I feel so blessed to have my wonderful husband and 3 daughters, along with friends and extended family, to support me through this journey. I have been given the opportunity to take control of my health. It is not always easy. In fact, most of the time it's down right scary, but if going through this gives me just one more day with my children than it will have been completely worth it!"
She is such a brave women, wife, mother, sister and friend.
If you wish to send her an encouraging message, please do so in a comment below. I will make sure to pass on all of the thoughts, prayers and well wishes to her.
We love you Lauren!
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| PEACE OUT to the TA-TAs!!! |
