News broke in mid-January that Chris Evert, a top professional tennis player in the 1970’s and 1980’s, had been diagnosed with Stage 1 ovarian cancer. At first glance, this is very sad news. However, in reading the story’s details, it becomes clear that Chris is… Continue reading
I was born a Yankee fan. My father was raised in the South Bronx, a son of penniless Jewish immigrants who had fled Czarist Russia, too poor to buy a ticket to Yankee Stadium. He and his pals watched the games from the roof of his apartment building. He grew up to be a… Continue reading
Social Support. Oncology Exercise. Each, on its own, is so powerful and necessary after a cancer diagnosis. Put them together, and … Wow! It’s a powerful combination. I’ve been working on marrying social support and fitness for almost five years, since my… Continue reading
It’s that time of year when GIFTS are high on our minds. One of my favorite – and amusing – lines from all of my cancer-girl books is about gifts. In Five Lessons I Didn’t Learn From Breast Cancer (And One Big One I Did), Shelly Lewis wisely writes, “Cancer is not a… Continue reading
October ended six weeks ago, and it flooded me with relief. That might seem like a strange thing to say about such an innocuous month, one filled with foliage and candy corn. Let me explain. In October 2017, I participated in a "Boxing for Boobies" event organized by a… Continue reading
In 2009, I was sure my BRCA test would be positive. I was Ashkenazi. I had ovarian and uterine cancer. I’d grown up hearing about great aunts with unspeakable disease. But BRCA wasn’t my issue. It took years before I knew what was. In 2021, after another bout of cancer,… Continue reading
I was 33 years old, had a 13-month-old son and was 33 weeks pregnant with my daughter. That’s when I found the lump. Triple negative breast cancer. BRCA1 positive. Inherited from my father. When the doctors told me it was cancer, I was in a state of shock. I could… Continue reading
November is Men’s Health Awareness Month, and I hope that sharing my BRCA journey will help others, especially men. BRCA, known as the “breast cancer gene,” became a household term for our family in 2018 when I completed a “direct to consumer” genetic test -- largely… Continue reading
This message appeared in the special edition of The Jewish Federations National Women’s Philanthropy (NWP) newsletter It is with great honor that I write this D’var Torah. The women of Federation and National Women's Philanthropy are some of the strongest, most… Continue reading
Dense breasts are fairly common. In fact, slightly more women have them than don't. Still, many women are confused about what it means to have dense breasts and how this may affect cancer screenings. Breasts are made up of milk-producing glands, ducts that carry the milk;… Continue reading
