Does anyone else get upset over celebrity BC deaths?

Options
Faith1111
Faith1111 Member Posts: 46
edited July 2020 in Mental Health: Because Cancer Doesn't Just Affect Your Breasts

It's been a year since my surgery and I completed treatment in September.

Every time I hear a new celebrity died or has come down with a breast cancer relapse, I get upset all over again.

My immediate thought is, hey you are in denial that's probably going to happen to you too eventually.

Just learned Kelly Preston, John Travolta's wife died after a 2 year battle.

Do others have this same reaction? I know not all of us will get it again, but it's still upsetting and makes you think about your mortality again.


· Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
«1

Comments

  • tangandchris
    tangandchris Member Posts: 1,855
    edited July 2020

    Yes.....it makes me sad and angry. It's like a slap of reality when I hear about anyone dying from BC.


    ((Hugs))

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • MegOh
    MegOh Member Posts: 12
    edited July 2020

    I'm upset, but now maybe more curious. What type did she have? Did she have treatment? Surgery? So many questions. Apparently they kept it secret, so yes, for those of us here..talking about our journey, it comes as a shock.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Faith1111
    Faith1111 Member Posts: 46
    edited July 2020

    thank you, hugs to you too

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Faith1111
    Faith1111 Member Posts: 46
    edited July 2020

    Yes, I like to know the details too so I can compare it to my situation. In Kelly’s case no details have been released.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Bejeweled
    Bejeweled Member Posts: 49
    edited July 2020

    I definitely feel this. It’s like getting cold water splashed in my face. I wonder about the details and what the treatment plan was - I suppose to compare it to myself.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Belinda977
    Belinda977 Member Posts: 381
    edited July 2020

    I always want the details too.. However, being in this breast cancer world for 8 years, if you look hard enough you can find someone with your exact diagnosis and a bad outcome....it's stressful.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • mumito
    mumito Member Posts: 4,562
    edited July 2020

    I had all the same reactions what type did she have and what stage was it discovered. So very sad for the family they had already lost a son as well.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • cm2020
    cm2020 Member Posts: 615
    edited July 2020

    I'm glad to see that you posted about this. When I saw she had died and died of breast cancer this morning it felt like someone punched me in the gut. I have been crying and extra scared ever since. I am early in my fight and 54 years old. It just seems to hit so close to home. Also she leaves behind a heartbroken family and I feel just beyond sad for them.


    Edit: i just read the other posts after posting. but yes, i would like details of her diagnosis. the only thing released was that she had battled it for 2 years.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Peregrinelady
    Peregrinelady Member Posts: 1,019
    edited July 2020
    I came here to see if anyone was talking about this. Two years is awfully quick. Either it was very aggressive or her “treatment” wasn’t standard of care. I just remember that when their son died from an epileptic seizure, it was said that they did not have him on medication because it was against their religion. I do not know if this was true or not but it makes me wonder about her treatment. Either way it is understandable why she kept it private with the speculation after Jett’s death. But it is frustrating and sad for those of us who are curious about why she only survived two years.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • PawPatrolMom
    PawPatrolMom Member Posts: 32
    edited July 2020

    Hi all,

    I don’t post much but I come every so often to read posts. I woke up in a great mood and when I saw the news my heart dropped. Every single time I hear of a celebrity or someone it hurts me to my core. Two weeks ago I heard of two people having a recurrence, one I don’t know details and other was a different type than I had, but I still stayed up googling stuff about triple negative as if I was newly diagnosed. This is like a mind f^*k every time. I’m so sad for her family but also upset about it. No one can truly understand except you guys and I had to post on this. Thanks for starting this thread because my first reaction was to come on here because only you guys would understand. My husband doesn’t get it. I’m just supposed to be grateful for every day. I am but itdoesn’t mean it’s not hard emotionally!

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • ctmbsikia
    ctmbsikia Member Posts: 1,095
    edited July 2020

    While I respect the family's right to privacy, I too, am wondering what sub type and treatment she had to only live 2 years. I do remember the speculation over Jett's death. Guess we'll never know. RIP Kelly. Sad news, and so young.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • VL22
    VL22 Member Posts: 851
    edited July 2020

    She received treatment at MD Anderson - Travolta put out a post thanking the doctors and nurses

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • ctmbsikia
    ctmbsikia Member Posts: 1,095
    edited July 2020

    Thank you for that info VL22. Maybe it was inflammatory? I hate hearing about BC deaths.




    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Belinda977
    Belinda977 Member Posts: 381
    edited July 2020

    But did she start treatment late, or right at diagnosis? I wonder.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Peregrinelady
    Peregrinelady Member Posts: 1,019
    edited July 2020
    I was thinking the same thing, Belinda.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • edj3
    edj3 Member Posts: 2,076
    edited July 2020

    Here's the thing. I thought the same ting when I read the new--I wanted to know the details, the type, her treatment, etc. etc. etc.

    But I hated it when people wanted to know what kind I had and how I lived my life because it was so obvious they asked so they could reassure themselves that they would never get it.

    Bottom line, she had a nasty hateful disease and it killed her. That's the tragedy.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited July 2020

    Someone on another thread mentioned they were Scientologists. That might have affected decisions for tx choices, etc. as well although I don't know much about Scientology.

    Claire in AZ

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • alto
    alto Member Posts: 233
    edited July 2020

    Yes, news of Kelly Preston's death led me here, too. I read the news, and that she was treated at MD Anderson - it always makes me a little sadder to think, Darn, that person probably had the best medical care that exists... I'm sad for Kelly and her family. Cancer sucks.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • sugarplum
    sugarplum Member Posts: 318
    edited July 2020

    Thank you for this thread. I just read the news on my phone and again felt the familiar gut-punch, so this is the first place I came to get more info. My heart aches for John, whom I really like, just as it did when he lost his son. The double whammy is: breast cancer was the culprit (I've spent the last 14 years waiting for my other shoe to drop).

    I'll continue to keep my ear to the ground since I, too, am hungry for more details. Love to all...Julie

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • illimae
    illimae Member Posts: 5,710
    edited July 2020

    Yes, it’s upsetting to me too, as I’ve been dealing with metastatic bc for 3.5 years and she only got two. I suspect the short time frame must have something to do with Scientology, perhaps treatment was delayed by trying their religions healing techniques first. Who knows, I’m speculating but since it was kept so private, I doubt we’ll ever know. Just sad.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • exbrnxgrl
    exbrnxgrl Member Posts: 12,424
    edited July 2020

    My condolences to the Travolta family. My heart goes out to their children. While I am curious, to the extent that I always am regarding breast cancer, I respect their desire for privacy and hope others do as well.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • kbinthed
    kbinthed Member Posts: 2
    edited July 2020

    Yes,and I looked at Kelly Preston’s social media and see that she posted a pic of herself less than a month ago and she looked perfectly fine. I think to myself will I look healthy when I go

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • wrenn
    wrenn Member Posts: 2,707
    edited July 2020

    I think celebrity is more important in the US than other countries (celebrity leader). I notice when anyone dies of breast cancer or dies too young. I mostly notice when it is someone in my cancer community here. I think any death under 75 is sadder for some reason.

    Condolences for her family. So hard on them.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • exbrnxgrl
    exbrnxgrl Member Posts: 12,424
    edited July 2020

    kbinthed,

    Many of us who have stage IV bc look “fine”. I think that looking at a photo that someone has posted on social media is not a good measure of ones health

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • anotherNYCGirl
    anotherNYCGirl Member Posts: 1,033
    edited July 2020

    So sad for the Travolta family. They seemed like a sweet couple who had already shared the very tragic loss of a child.

    And yes, I, too, find it personally scary when I know that they can afford the best care and have influence to help them get in to see the best people.

    I HATE CANCER!!


    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • MelissaDallas
    MelissaDallas Member Posts: 7,268
    edited July 2020

    I get upset over the Stage IV folks here on the boards who die a lot more than I do celebrities that I have no relationship sith.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • JACK5IE
    JACK5IE Member Posts: 760
    edited July 2020

    Hearing the sad news about Kelly Preston brought me to this thread as well. Being Stage 4, hearing about a breast cancer death is very frightening. I do wish they gave more details, but I respect their right to privacy as well. Rest in peace Kelly.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • exbrnxgrl
    exbrnxgrl Member Posts: 12,424
    edited July 2020

    Thanks Melissa. I was, essentially, stage IV from the beginning. I am one of the few stage IV members whose join date is 2011. That’s what upsets me.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Mavericksmom
    Mavericksmom Member Posts: 635
    edited July 2020

    I agree with most of the comments here. I did feel sad when I heard the news of Kelly's passing. That said, I remember clearly the conversation I had with my breast surgeon when I was diagnosed in 2003. At that time not only was I the first in my family to have breast cancer, I didn't know a single person who had it. I expressed that to my doctor and she said, "Just wait, once you have been diagnosed, breast cancer patients seem to come out of the woodwork!" It was true. From that day on, "they" kept coming, and for me it was personal, my mother, a few months after my diagnosis and my sister exactly one year to the day of my diagnosis. My sister was also treated for breast cancer at MD Anderson in Houston. She actually lived longer than Kelly, but she had both IDC and non-Hodgkins lymphoma at the same time. She fought for seven years before acquiring MDS caused by the radiation treatments for the other cancers, before passing away.

    I agree with MelissaDallas, I think of those who are stage IV every day. Celebrity or not, it is always sad when someone passes away. I lost a friend in December due to pre surgery chemo. Totally unexpected, but she developed sepsis and died quickly.

    Remember: MANY, STAGE IV PATIENTS LIVE FOR A LONG, LONG, LONG TIME, AND EVERY DAY WE ARE ONE DAY CLOSER TO NEW TREATMENTS AND, WITH LUCK, A CURE!!! SO PAUSE FOR SADNESS, BUT LIVE IN THE JOY OF LIFE!

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • BevJen
    BevJen Member Posts: 2,523
    edited July 2020

    Mavericksmom,

    Thanks for your last statement. Although I only joined BCO in January of 2019 (as my tumor markers were rising and prior to my current mets diagnosis) I was originally diagnosed with BC in 2003, and my first encounter with MBC was in 2006.

    None of us knows how long we will live, BC or not. Having said that, I did immediately focus on Kelly Preston's death as soon as I heard it this morning. It's very sad, but anyone with this disease, at any stage, has a lot to deal with. We all try and get through it one day at a time.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Categories