Christina Applegate...venting

Ladies, let's not forget that many, if not most, of us are 100% cured.  The trouble is, none of us know which ones of us that is.  We can do all we need to do to make sure we are among the lucky ones and then we have to choose either to trust that we are cured or worry that we are not.  Worry never solved anything, so I choose to live my life as if I knew I were 100% cured.

Hon, yes, but sometimes the treatment does cure.

Is it possible she stated "100% cured" so she could get the media monkey off her back, and stop making money/profits off of her, her mother's bc battle? hmmm?  Could it be, she wanted the media to back off as this is a private battle?  If she wanted to tell the planet earth she had bc, thinkin she would have call the media herself.   Sometimes I think the media should get a moral conscience.

It took a lot of courage to go on TV and do what she did since she had been outed by someone to the scandal rags for something so personal.

Living in the fish bowl that is Hollywood has to really be crappy when you get right down to it. When you can not be ill, sad etc. when a size 4 is considered overweight and a size 10 is a plus size. Imagine what it must be like to have no breasts. We of all the people should be able to empathize with how she feels. Heck I refer to my self as a construction zone, uniboob etc. Why, humor helps me get through the day and combat the anger that lies just below the surface. Sometimes I say it to the wrong people and they feel uncomfortable but you know what so is my expander.

We are survivors.

Yes Ann Jillian is a BC survivor  and they did make a TV movie about it back in the 80's, she does motivational speaking and still acts.

Just to add a note Ann Jillian is an actress that had bc many many years ago.  She played the Jeannie in I Dream of Jeannie (I'm pretty sure she did).  Anyway, she had a bilateral and did not have recon.  She was one of the first actress' that went public having her breasts removed without a rebuild and survived it!  She publicly shared how her husband accepted her body with its changes and she didn't need her breasts to be a woman.  Not everyone has that strength but she is a very strong woman!

CA I think is doing what she has to in order to preserve her career.  I don't know if she went to college and has anything to fall back on, but at the moment she is a successful actress and can be judged on her looks in that job.  The really sad part is, is probably that these stupid rag magazines are going to be fighting trying to get pictures of her new breasts and will make it front page news.  Talk about exploiting someone.  Living in that type of environment I think she said and did what she has to for survival.  Watching her mom die of this disease makes me think she is well aware of what her fate can be.  She has been responsible so far and hopefully she is cured!

Abbadoodles, Winner and others....

      I am with you.....I AM CURED !!!! That is what I believe and that is how I shall live my life !!!  God has a plan for me and I believe it is to live a long and healthy life. 

     So I had a very rough bump in the road.  I lost my hair, lost my breasts, went into menopause, gained weight, had a hysterectomy, but the most important thing is I am alive.  If I am that upset about what the media has to say then it is my job to do something about. Get out and work for a BC cause. Raise awareness and money to get the job done.  We can all make a difference by example from our past or what we are going through.

      I did not realize how heated this discussion would become.  Use this passion to make a difference.  The media goes crazy over everthing.  It is what they do.  We need to all go crazy over what we are passionate about in the world of cancer.  As Nike states "Just Do It".

I am really behind in all of this, and just caught these discussions today.

I watched her interview just now, and want to say how interesting it is how differently we all respond to her words. 

Cancer (and breast cancer) are very sensitive topics for us, and rightfully so. 

One thing I'd like to point out (forgive me if I missed it, there were lots of posts!) is how wonderful it is that she is going to start a program to help pay for genetic testing and MRI's.  I had to pay quite a bit of money for both of those, as neither were covered by my insurance.  Such a program will be a huge blessing for others. 

The other thing is that maybe she doesn't use the same jargon and lingo as we do here, but I don't think she is uneducated as far as this topic is concerned.  I caught that she said "this was the best decision......for ME."  She disclaimed herself.  It's cool. 

I also want to point out that haven't any of you just tried to "smooth it over," when all of the initial attention was dumped on you?  I was surprised to say the least that Robin, a fellow sister/survivor asked what the prognosis was for her. (EDIT TO ADD: BETH, as usual, you worded my feelings about Robin exactly spot on.  She really insisted that she would be fine, so on and so on, and she did have her days.  You go, girl.)

 OMG, when people ask/ed that of me, do they think I'll answer, "I currently have no cancer in my body, but I was triple negative and therefore have a rather aggressive case, especially since I was a grade III.  There is no option of Arimidex or Herceptin for me, so I have to live on faith alone.  My oncologist says if I gain weight rather than lose weight, I am asking for the cancer to come back, blah blah blah......" ???????  

Nope. 

I say, "I am currently cancer free." 

She only said, "I am definitely not going to die from this."  I interpret that the same way I communicated to people.  I used TheresaPW's words, "Living WITH cancer, NOT dying from it." 

I hated when people asked me my prognosis.  I HATED it. Was I expected to say, "I'm only going to live another 6 months."???  What a question.  Ask how we are feeling.  Not if we are dying.   

I think Christina is going to be a great ambassador for the younger women out there.  She hasn't had much time in this role, she needs to let this sink in. 

BethNY, you asked this:

"Ask yourselves why it's so important for the NON cancer world to know that we aren't cured?  Will they understand our fear?  Will they have more compassion for us?"

I don't know if they would have more compassion for us, but I do think there would be a better understanding of the fears we face, and of the tremendous amount of work that still needs to be done.

This might not be a good analogy, but I'm going to use it anyway.  How many people do you know that have been "cured" of AIDS?  None, I suspect, because at this point, AIDS cannot be cured.  Everyone knows that (or should know it).  The powerful and expensive drugs that AIDS patients are given will keep the virus suppressed, but only for awhile.  That might be weeks, or it might be years; but so far, I doubt very many people dx'd with AIDS in their 40's or 50's have died of old age. 

So, should the general public be fooled into believing that someone can be "100% cured" of AIDS?  Or, if someone with AIDS takes those nice antiviral drugs for a couple of weeks, he/she will have minimal or no SE's, and will live happily ever after?

No, I don't think so. 

Why should the long-term prognosis for BC be treated differently?  I think it's because most of the general public want to believe that BC is curable.  It affects mothers and daughters and sisters, some of them too young to have seen their own children through grade school.  It affects their breasts--a very visible, highly desirable, emotionally charged anatomical feature.  And, the money-raising efforts have created an aura around BC that is, well, ... so darn PINK.

How could anything associated with a soft, pink ribbon be so deadly?

There is a psychology to fund-raising, just as there is to promoting Hollywood starlets.  Would people be as willing to give their time and money, if they knew the recurrence rate of BC goes up after the first 5 years, in ER+ women who've been on an estrogen blocker?  What would they say if they found out the risk of BC recurrence never disappears--it continues for at least 15 years, probably even longer.  How many of them realize that, once a person is dx'd with mets/Stage IV BC, the intent of treatment isn't to cure the disease--it's simply to slow it down.

People want to hear good news.  They want us to tell them we're doing fine, thanks.  They want to think we've been cured.

Why shouldn't they know the truth?

otter 

Otter I think your analogy is great.  It brings me to a different point...

Do you know that only 11,000 people in the US will die next year of AIDS, yet it still TRUMPS cancer as far as the amount of money the government gives to AIDS vs Cancer funding....

this makes me insane.  Especially b/c on many levels AIDS can be prevented.

But, I totally digress.

I still don't know if the general population was more educated about not having a cure for cancer that they would somehow be more compassionate.  I know the one thing I hate is when people treat me like I am fine china.  This was especially the case during chemo.  I'd hate to be viewed as less strong, or just less of a woman than an average healthy woman who could get hit by a bus tomorrow b/c I had an illness that may come back one day.

It's hard to say that cancer hasn't defined me, b/c on so many levels it has.  It's what I know, it's what I do.  Its in my regular work, my volunteer work, it is so much a part of my every day life.  BUT, I wouldn't want to be defined by the fear part of cancer.  I don't try to explain to my noncancer friends what that fear is like, b/c they can't understand it, and I don't want to put that worry on their shoulders. 

Sometimes I feel like the noncancer people in my life are waiting for the other shoe to drop when it comes to my health b/c they know there is no cure.  I try to look at all of this as an opportunity to educate other people.

More importantly for me, is to make my young friends aware of BSE's and about general breast health.  I think that's a huge thing that I get to pass onto them.  I'm still not even close to the age where they start doing mammo's but I can tell you when I get there, I will be the first person to start a buddy system with my girlfriends to remind them to check their breasts and have their yearly exams.

It will be very interesting to watch the SU2C event, and I'm so glad CA will be a part of it.  I hope she will share more of her own story.  I know that people are saying she's not aware of a lot, but overall I think she has been very proactive due to her moms history.  The fact that her cancer was picked up on an MRI means they could have caught it in it's earliest growth-- it may have even been under a centimeter....

Sorry to be all over the place with this post-- but another thing to consider... if we want the general public to be more aware that there isn't a cure, and truly we can never really be cured... well, what are we doing about it?  I'm all for sitting around here and talking about the issues, but I'd much rather take a stand and DO something about it.

Hey all,

Maybe I'm missing something here, but after my bi-lat mastectomies, my surgeon told me I was now "cancer free".  Although there are no guarantees for the future, by choosing the mastectomies, I had effectively cut my risk down to about the same as the general population.

I had DCIS and a strong family history.  (1st degree relative with bc before age 50, 2nd degree relative with bc and another with ovarian cancer).  Christina Applegate had this in addition to testing BRCA1 positive (I was negative).  I did not see the GMA interview, however I read the story in my newspaper.  I felt she made the right choice for the right reasons and I was glad she shared her story.  Not that I need to, but It somehow helped to justify my choice to those loved ones who feel I was too radical.  Like someone said in another thread, "walk a mile in my bra". 

I believe that with her fame and relative youth, she will bring a lot to the bc discussion.  I admire the fact that she has already decided what her focus will be for others (MRI's).  I am not certain that I've heard the same from Robin Roberts or Melissa Etheridge.  I'm not saying they haven't, but I may have missed it. 

Be well,

Maria

I haven't read through this whole thread, but I have been following the story.  I have learned over the last few years not to judge how other women handle bc.  This has not come easy to me.  Most women I know or hear about with bc are diagnosed much earlier than I was and i have struggled to understand their fear and sadness when what I'm thinking is how jealous I am that their's was caught so early.  I remember reading Sheryl Crowe saying radiation was akin to being raped and thinking she could only think something like that if she didn't have chemo.

 These are not feelings I'm proud of and i think I've gotten much better about seeing each woman as she is, with where she is.  Which brings me to CA, who has probably lived with a fear of bc ever since her mother had it.  She had to make a very difficult decision and i think it is totally understandable that she is proud of herself for making that call, and handling it as well as she has.  And if the word gets out that early detection allows you to go out there and claim you are cured, well maybe more women will get screened.  I don't think the idea that early detection saves lives is a bad one to have out there. 

Christina is a public figure and with all the perks of her career, the downside if that some things she doesn't want public are made so. Celebrities use the media when they want publicity.  We have aright to comment on her interview and discuss things she has said publically. I assume since she openly discussed her surgery, she's going to be strong enough not to care when people comment about her reconstruction. Maybe she'll do a playboy centerfold and show everyone just how great she looks. That would be awesome for the cause and for her.

It sounds like she may not have used the word "cure." So I would certainly applaud that.

My only issue is that when the uninitiated public hears about someone being "cured" they view BC as less ominous, something they may not have to be so vigilant about, because after all, it can be cured. There are already many misconceptions about BC among people who don't have a personal connection to it. We have all heard the stories about "oh, you have breast cancer... you'll be ok" as if it's no big deal -- because a lot of women ARE ok in the end.

I don't think Christina has any obligation to be a spokesperson for BC or to trot ot her personal details to anyone. I would hate having that kind of spotlight on me.

sorry, "hard on CA" and "further educated."  I'm sooo tired. Mary

Maryiz, I think a factual documentary would be wonderful.  However, I wonder who would watch it?  How many people are really interested?  We would watch it.  I wonder if I would watch something like that if I had never been dxd. 

I don't know what it's going to take to put a real face to this disease.

Shirley