 Photo by Seven Shooter on Unsplash ** This post includes affiliate links** Introduction One of the most famous cancer patients in modern history was a Black woman named Henrietta Lacks. She is considered the Mother of Modern Medicine because while being treated for cervical cancer at John's Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, her cells were unknowingly retrieved during a biopsy. This wife and mother died in 1951 at the young age of 31. However, it turns out that her cells, called the HeLa Cells, are still alive today and are the basis for many medical miracles that we benefit from. A book about her life called The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks consistently ranks high in a search for Top Cancer Books on Amazon. As the Mother of Modern Medicine, her HeLa cells have been used to solve some of the greatest medical challenges and generate significant medical industry profits. Based on her life, the book is a top cancer book on Amazon and has sold over 2.5 million copies. These are two incredible feats. Unfortunately, the book was not based on her own written words and her family has not received any financial benefit from her HeLa Cells. In a Washington Post article, the oldest son of Henrietta Lacks, Lawrence, said, "The book fails to capture his mother's grace." And that "More and more, she seems not like a wife and mother of five, but "just a cell." Think how compelling it would have been to hear Mrs. Lack's first-hand accounts of her cancer experience in her own printed words. Need Stories of Black Cancer Survival Just after my 38th birthday, I was diagnosed with Stage 3 Inflammatory Breast Cancer. As a young Black woman diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of breast cancer, I was desperate to find stories about Black women surviving cancer, especially breast cancer. I knew there were so many disparities that Black women faced in our healthcare system and desired an ounce of hope by reading cancer survival stories. In 2019, nearly 34,000 Black women were diagnosed with breast cancer in the United States. More of us are diagnosed at a younger age with more aggressive or late-stage cancer. Where are the stories of survival? If you want to read books from Black women authors who have gone through such a diagnosis, those stories are few and far between. This month we are celebrating Women's History Month. As part of that history, we have to recognize the journey that has been taken by Black women who have conquered breast cancer. Black Books Matter is a term coined by Mahogany books. Representation in books by Black breast cancer survivors gives those of us fighting cancer "a voice to their fears, hopes, wants, and needs." Black women and families need to feel empowered by the stories of others who have gone through this terrible disease. The stories in such books serve as an inspiration to so many of us. Searching for Black Women Breast Cancer Stories After my breast cancer diagnosis in 2013, I was curious to learn about other black women who had successfully battled breast cancer. Still, I wasn't successful in finding any such books back then. I searched Google and Amazon and came up pretty empty. Instead, I mainly found books by white women who had fought breast cancer. I recently began searching to find books written by Black women concerning their breast cancer journey and found the following.
Final Thoughts While there is a movement to elevate Black lives, Black books, and Black-Owned book stores, I hope this movement will make room for Black lives impacted by cancer. Do you have any books to add to this list of Black authors surviving breast cancer? *Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions remain my own. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
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.In every professional sport, the team owner and manager meet before the draft to identify their weaknesses to identify gaps that need to be filled with the upcoming sports draft. When I was diagnosed with cancer, I was amazed at the support team that I had in place. This network of family members and friends who support us along the way fulfilled various roles. Not too long ago, I came across guidance for building your Career Development Network. It describes key roles that can bring strength to your network; Motivators, Cheerleaders, Straight Shooters, Connectors, Role Models and Brainstormers. Looking back at my team, I can picture in my mind individuals who fulfilled each one of those roles.  My husband served as a key Motivator. He knew what I was capable of and pushed me to not dwell on the fear that I had, but to get energized to get beyond that moment in time. In addition, I did my best to fill my thoughts with inspiring stories of other cancer survivors, to include a book by Lynne Eib, called *50 Days of Hope: Daily Inspiration for Your Journey Through Cancer. I swear by this book and how it lifted my spirits after reading just a few short stories.
I found a great Connector in a complete stranger, who I was introduced to by an administrator at my children’s school. She had also been diagnosed with the same rare cancer and definitely help to connect me with other like individuals and key resources that I would have otherwise been oblivious to me. Role Models for me came in the form of other women who had been diagnosed with the same rare and aggressive form of cancer. One such role model led a non-profit that she created to increase awareness in quickly detecting this from of cancer for both cancer patients and medical practitioners. It is this willingness to share her experiences with others that I seek to emulate. I found several Cheerleaders through friends and church members, who were confident that good news would be forthcoming in my cancer journey. One close friend who encouraging letters to me throughout treatment, local food delivery and gift cards regularly dropped off at our home, a group of nuns in Texas that prayed for me daily and church members prayed over me and my family each week after service. Both of my parents were Straight Shooters. They love me, but don’t mince words. They have always been lovingly honest and direct with their approach and being diagnosed with cancer didn’t change things. I can recall my mom having an honest conversation with me about how she had traveled to stay with us for an extended period of time to help out our family during this time. What was I doing? I was still trying to be a superwoman, going to chemo, cooking and cleaning and trying to maintain some normalcy. My mom did what a mom does, pulled me to the side and told me to “STOP” trying to be superwoman. She told me that my TOP PRIORITY right now was to get treatment and keep my body strong enough to continue treatment. I found the Brainstormers in my support team to be other cancer survivors in both my in-person and online cancer support groups. These were the people who were able to help me solve a challenge that I was having or brainstorm ways to solve the challenge. I also counted by oncologists as brainstormers. With a diagnosis of a rare and aggressive cancer, I was aggressive in my questioning of the treatment plan while in active treatment and years following recovery to prevent recurrence. Both groups offered to listen to my questions and suggestions and worked with me as a team to get to a resolution. I appreciate them for their willingness to go beyond the limits. When building you’re “A” Team, you should have a variety of people that can help you in differing and difficult situations. Looking at your network today, do you have the people in your network who can fulfill these vital roles for you? *Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions remain my own. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. |
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