Race for the Cure

Sunday was the Susan G. Kommen Race for the Cure. I love doing running events and thought that this would be a great way to mark the beginning of treatment. I've been running with K2 (neighbor/friend) for the past year, and both of us have been benched this spring - she with an injury, and me due to the surgeries. We were both ready to get running again and took the past few weeks to ease into running the 5K last Sunday. We completed in 37 minutes with several walk breaks, but it was good to get out and run with a crowd again.

I was surprised at how few survivors were part of the running section. Maybe it was too early in the morning, or maybe it was because cancer is usually a disease of age, and most people in their 60's don't run anymore. Most of the ladies in pink (the survivors wore a special pink shirt, while the others wore white) participated in the walk event. It took about 30 minutes to get all of the walkers on the course - there were so many. The amazing thing to me was how many white shirts there were. Men, women and children who raised money to help fight breast cancer, and to gather at such a large event to show support of others fighting the fight.

I am having a hard time describing the emotions of walking around in the pink shirt. One the one hand you are immediately identifiable and treated like royalty. The sponsors give lots of gifts and samples. Free chair massages are available along with a yummy survivors breakfast with a separate restroom area from the crowds. If you have ever participated in a running event, you know how huge that is! Side note: Every time we do an event, K2 and I end up running to the start line, in order to start running on time, usually because of ridiculous lines at the port a potties, and early morning jitters. I laugh every time.

On the other hand, the pink shirt is bittersweet, because you know that the reason you get one is because you have a yucky disease. When I was diagnosed, I was told that this was 98% survival rate. I thought that meant that you would get it once, treat it and 98% chance it was just gone. That's not exactly what that means. Once you have breast cancer, your chance of having it again goes way up. In my case, the treatment (chemo, radiation, hormone therapy) is to prevent the return of the disease. To me, that's the bittersweet part of wearing the pink shirt. Knowing that we've fought it, but that it still could come back.

These events are not just to honor breast cancer survivors, but to raise money to continue the research to find a cure for breast cancer, which will also help in finding a cure for all cancers. I did not actively fundraise this year, I just didn't have the emotional energy to get out and ask right now. I will do that in years to come. If you are interested in contributing financially to the fight against breast cancer I have 2 close friends who are training for the Susan G. Kommen 3-Day Walk. Brenda and Anna are part of a team who has a goal of raising $10,000 toward finding a cure for breast cancer. Anna is also a breast cancer survivor, from a family of women who have fought the disease. You can contribute here.

Their team is devoted to finding a cure, because we all have daughters. When a woman is diagnosed, her mother, sisters and daughters are also at a higher risk. Anna and Brenda's team is called Next Generation, and they are raising money so that our daughters may not have to face the battle that Anna & I, along with countless others have had to face. Our girls have grown up together in our church Life Group, Girl Scouts, school, VBS, family camping trips - you name it. They've been friends now through 2 of their moms' being diagnosed. That's 2 too many, and the risk to the next generation is still too high.