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breast cancer

Love Stories

A husband documented his wife's battle with cancer capturing love and loss beautifully

"These photographs do not define us, but they are us."

Angelo Merendino

Angelo Merendino with his late wife Jennifer

When I saw these incredible photos Angelo Merendino took of his wife, Jennifer, as she battled breast cancer, I felt that I shouldn't be seeing this snapshot of their intimate, private lives. The photos humanize the face of cancer and capture the difficulty, fear, and pain that they experienced during the difficult time.

But as Angelo commented: "These photographs do not define us, but they are us."

In his photo exhibition, Angelo wrote:

"Jennifer was diagnosed with breast cancer five months after our wedding. She passed less than four years later. During our journey we realized that many people are unaware of the reality of day to day life with cancer. After Jen’s cancer metastasized we decided to share our life through photographs."

All images by Angelo Merendino, published here with permission.


cancer, cancer treatment, marriage, love, love storiesAngelo and Jennifer drink beersassets.rebelmouse.io

On his website, Angelo writes:

"With each challenge we grew closer. Words became less important. One night Jen had just been admitted to the hospital, her pain was out of control. She grabbed my arm, her eyes watering, 'You have to look in my eyes, that’s the only way I can handle this pain.' We loved each other with every bit of our souls. Jen taught me to love, to listen, to give and to believe in others and myself. I’ve never been as happy as I was during this time."

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"People assume that treatment makes you better, that things become OK, that life goes back to 'normal,' Angelo wrote. "There is no normal in cancer-land. Cancer survivors have to define a new sense of normal, often daily. And how can others understand what we had to live with everyday?"

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This article originally appeared thirteen years ago.

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Heroes

A new breast cancer study has good news, but not everyone can celebrate equally.

For years, breast cancer patients, survivors, and their families have wondered if decades of walks, ribbons, fundraising, awareness, and dedicated activism were making a difference.

On Tuesday, a new batch of results came in.

A statistical analysis published by the American Cancer Society found that mortality rates from breast cancer fell 39% between 1989 and 2015.

The decrease amounts to 322,600 saved lives in 26 years, according to the paper's authors. Researchers attribute the drop to increased early detection and more effective treatment options.

The percentage of women over 40 who have had a mammogram in the prior two years grew from 29% in 1987 to 64% in 2015. Meanwhile, options for combatting the disease have increased, thanks to the advent of new drugs and therapies.

Hundreds of thousands of fewer people dying is good news.

The bad news is that black women continue to die from the disease at higher rates than any other demographic.

While a lower percentage of black women are dying from the disease overall, their fatality rates are still nearly 40% higher than those of white women, a rate that has remained maddeningly persistent for decades.

Photo by USAG, Humphreys/Flickr.

"The reason for the black and white difference is primarily related to economic status and lack of insurance on part of black women," Harold Freeman, former director of the American Cancer Society, told NPR in a 2014 interview.  "But also, we have a health care system that doesn't treat everyone equally." He cites a lack of ability to pay for preventive care and subconscious assumptions that lead some medical professionals to ignore black women's concerns as contributing factors.

The study also found that the racial mortality gap varied heavily by region. Disparities were worst in eight mostly southern states: Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Virginia, Indiana, and Michigan.

Eliminating the racial disparity when it comes to breast cancer diagnoses will require more than ribbons and walks to solve — and organizations are already rising to the challenge.

Groups like Breast Cancer Action have made racial justice a core plank, citing the need to address the disparities in education, housing, and economic power that exacerbate the mortality gap at its root.

As a stopgap, programs like the CDC's National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program help provide early detection screenings to low-income and uninsured people.

While some states indeed showed large, persistent racial disparities in mortality rates, according to the study, the gap was nearly nonexistent in several others. Three states — California, Massachusetts, and Delaware — made significant, verifiable progress in making outcomes more equal over the 26-year span.

"This means that there is light at the end of the tunnel," Carol DeSantis, lead author of the study, told The Washington Post. "Some states are showing that they can close the gap."

For the 252,710 people expected to be diagnosed with breast cancer this year — and hundreds of thousands more in the years to come — the progress in treating the disease is a welcome sign.

The work to make sure they all have an equal shot at a full recovery remains.

Heroes
Family

Julia Louis-Dreyfus shares her breast cancer diagnosis with a heartfelt call to action.

The 'Veep' star has an important message for her fans.

On Thursday, actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus announced via Twitter that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer.

Just 11 days after accepting her sixth straight Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, the "Veep" star shared her diagnosis with the world.

"1 in 8 women get breast cancer. Today, I'm the one," she wrote.

"The good news is that I have the most glorious group of supportive and caring family and friends, and fantastic insurance through my union," she added. "The bad news is that not all women are so lucky, so let's fight all cancers and make universal health care a reality."

Each year, an estimated 231,840 U.S. women will be diagnosed with breast cancer, and more than 40,000 will die. Early detection plays a huge role in reducing that number.

Breast cancer accounts for the second-most cancer-related deaths in U.S. women behind only lung cancer, according to the American Cancer Society. Regular screenings — self-checks and with a doctor — can aid in catching the cancer at its most treatable point, early on.

In her call to action, Louis-Dreyfus sounds optimistic, urging her followers to keep fighting so that others have access to the same care she'll be able to receive. While recent efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act have fallen flat, we are far from having "universal health care." 11% of women ages 19 to 64 in the U.S. don't have any form of health insurance. While that number has fallen since the ACA's implementation, it still means that millions of women are unable to access preventive care.

Thanks to a number of health centers around the country, such as Planned Parenthood, low-income and uninsured women aren't left completely out in the cold. Unfortunately, these groups are frequently under attack from political opponents.

Louis-Dreyfus's decision to share her diagnosis with her fans serves as a reminder that any of us can be hit by illness at any time — making the fight for universal care that much more important.

It's never a bad time to call your members of Congress and let them know that you want to live in a world where everybody has access to the same care she has.

We wish Louis-Dreyfus the absolute best of luck going forward.

Louis-Dreyfus accepts the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series on Sept. 17, 2017. Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images.

Family
Family

These twins share almost everything — except a common gene mutation.

True
Cigna 2017

The first thing you notice when you see twin sisters Carrie and Erica together are their smiles.

They’re big and welcoming, crinkling the corners of their eyes in exactly the same way.

Yet there's one big difference between Carrie and Erica. Carrie has the BRCA gene mutation. Erica doesn’t.

If you don’t know — don't feel bad because lots of people don't — a mutated BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene is one of the most common indicators that a person will get breast or ovarian cancer in their lifetime.

Watch Carrie and Erica's inspiring story below:

Her twin sister wouldn't be here today if it weren't for the preventive steps she took.

Posted by Upworthy on Thursday, June 29, 2017

"We have had a substantial family history of breast and ovarian cancers," Carrie says.  And when the sisters found out that their mom had the BRCA gene, they both decided to get tested for it too.

"I was positive and she was negative," says Carrie.

For Erica, relief at her diagnosis was short-lived. "I was also sad and nervous and upset that the two women closest to me, my mom and my sister, both had it."

Rather than worry, Carrie immediately went to work.

Together with her care providers, she arranged for mammograms and MRIs to test for breast cancer every six months, along with blood tests for ovarian cancer.

For a while, all the tests came back fine. Then, one routine MRI revealed some abnormal cells. Carrie had a biopsy to be sure, but the results were conclusive: cancer cells.

Like hundreds of thousands of other women, Carrie began cancer treatment — and she did it with her sister at her side.

"I started chemotherapy," she says. "Lost my hair, lost my appetite, lost a good sense of myself. But, you can come out the other side."

Erica and Carrie. Image via Cigna.

"Without preventive care, I probably would not be here today," she says, her voice breaking. "That's the truth."

Along with knowing her genetics, early detection helped save Carrie’s life. Now she’s not taking anything for granted.

"This could happen to anybody, no matter what age you are," she says. "I would highly suggest people go in to have regular doctor visits and to know your numbers so that you can take control of your health and your life."

Keeping an eye on your health numbers — blood pressure, blood sugar, BMI and cholesterol — can help you spot potential health problems early.

Erica agrees. "Going to the doctor is not the most comfortable thing and mammograms are not that comfortable, but I think Carrie has shown people what’s good about going to the doctor and finding out early."

As Carrie thinks about her future, she’s excited about what it holds. "I'm looking forward to having a family one day, traveling the world, and being more of a participant in this crazy, awesome life."

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