Breast Cancer Awareness Month: Two Women Survivors RISE and Share Their Inspiring Stories
By, Alyssa Sofat, The Fem Word Contributor
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, an annual campaign to raise awareness about a disease that affects 1 in 8 women in their lifetime and is the most common cancer in American women. While we don’t really know the cause, we know that it occurs when the cancer forms in either the lobules - the gland that makes milk - or the ducts - thin tubes that carry milk to the nipple - of the breast.
What can we do to prevent breast cancer? Some risk factors can be avoided but many are unavoidable like family history. So it’s important for women to go to their doctors and get annual mammograms, which can detect cancer at early stages before women can feel a lump. When breast cancer is detected early, at a localized stage, the survival rate is 98 percent. It’s also important to perform breast self-exams once a month: in the shower, in front of a mirror, or laying down. It’s really simple to do, and setting yourself a reminder - like the first of each month - is an easy way to remember to do it.
This year the theme for Breast Cancer Awareness Month is RISE - Rally in Supporting, Serving, Screening Everyone - because together we can help uplift women in need.
The Fem Word contributor, Alyssa Sofat, spoke with two women about their recent journey with breast cancer. Both women are true warriors in their determination to fight this terrible disease. And by sharing their stories here on The Fem Word, both survivors are true heroines who RISE in the face of this challenging time and rally in the support of women who might be going through the same thing.
The following is a conversation between Alyssa Sofat, The Fem Word Contributor, and breast cancer survivors Leyna Batta from Virginia and Neha Oza from Maryland.
LEYNA BATTA:
When and how did you find out you had breast cancer and what was your initial reaction?
“This family picture of us is the Sunday before my double mastectomy. My double mastectomy was on June 10, 2019. Gaurave wanted to get professional pictures of us all together before.” ~ Leyna Batta
On August 15, 2018, I gave birth to my third child, a beautiful baby girl we named Aviva Layne Batta. When she was about three months old, I felt a lump on my right breast while I was nursing her. I remember clearly thinking that she was too young for anything to happen to me, that it had to be nothing. I was too deep into the throws of mothering a newborn, a seven-year-old, and ten year old. I couldn't exude an ounce of energy on anything else. So, I willed myself to “unfeel” it. But, I couldn’t. Every time I fed her (which was a lot) I let my hand wander to the lump to make sure it was still there. I convinced myself that it was normal to feel all sorts of things on breasts that were sustaining a human's life, totally normal. I would check on my lump while I was driving, or watching T.V. Still there. I let months pass until I mentioned the lump to my husband and sister. The two people closest to me. They both assured me that it was probably nothing but I should go get it checked out. I called my OB and he saw me the next day. He was also reassuring, it felt like a cyst. But he wrote me a prescription for an ultrasound of my right breast (where the lump was) just to make sure.
I called Washington Radiology and they could also get me in the next day. That day, in late April 2019, at my ultrasound appointment, is when my gut told me I had cancer. It is the day I knew. Not because they definitively told me (it’s not my official diagnosis day), but everything changed from that appointment on. The radiologist wanted to do a mammogram first. I had never had one done. There was a bit of waiting because they had to call my OB and get a prescription for it. As you can imagine, a mammogram on an exclusively breastfeeding woman was both terrifying and comical. Milk is squirting everywhere and I was apologizing to this poor nurse...it was a scene. There was a lot of waiting, sitting half-naked in that dang robe, more pictures, more waiting, and I could sense something was wrong. When I finally got called back to the office for the sonogram, they had gotten my husband to be present in the room. The radiologist gave me a black sharpie and told me to make an X where I felt the lump. I did. She then grazed over the spot with that magical wand that sees right through your body. “I’m not worried about THAT lump, she said. It looks like a cyst because of this, that, and this. Let me show you what I see on the OTHER side.” And she drags that magical wand over to my left breast and says, “she is very worried about what she sees over here...” My husband asked her on a scale of 1-10, how concerned she was. She gave it an 8. Our hearts sunk. I hated the radiologist that day. How could she possibly be that pessimistic when I needed a biopsy and so many other tests to know for sure? It was because she knew too....and wasn’t scared to say it out loud like I was. I left that office with an appointment the following week for a biopsy. There was a lot of waiting after the biopsy. Waiting is a hard step in this journey and there is a lot of it.
Diagnosis Day - “That’s the day they called me and said I had cancer.” ~Leyna Batta
It's uncomfortable to live in that gray area space, the unknown. You spend a lot of time googling and thinking. Finally, I got a call on May 15, 2019, my official diagnosis day. It was in the morning after my two older kids had left for school. I was home alone with the baby. They called me and said, “I’m sorry, you have breast cancer.” Those words started an onslaught of doctors' appointments and tests, it was all a whirlwind. It was horrible and scary with flickers of hope mixed in. That radiologist that I hated so much (the one that said she would consider this an 8 out of 10 on a “worried” scale), saved my life. If it wasn’t for her being proactive, I would have only had an ultrasound for the lump on my right breast, as I was ordered to. Instead, she insisted on the mammogram because I had never had one.
My sweet baby girl also saved my life. My doctors told me that. My cancer had a high KI-67 score, which means it was growing quickly. The circumstances of breastfeeding and feeling that lump led to a series of events that ultimately gave me an early breast cancer diagnosis, and my best-case scenario. My story would likely be different if more time passed and the cancer was given the opportunity to grow.
If I’m being brutally honest, I would say that my world collapsed when I got that diagnosis. And then I rebuilt it, with the pieces stacked differently. There is so much beauty in the rebuilding. “Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it.” Helen Keller’s words that I live by.
How did you cope with knowing that you had breast cancer and who did you lean on for support during these uncertain times?
LEYNA:
I’m still coping! That’s the thing with cancer. It doesn’t just go away. There are constant reminders. I had a double mastectomy less than a month after my initial diagnosis and numerous surgeries since. Being a survivor means that the thought of cancer coming back can overwhelm you at times. On those days, I find it helps to exercise, talk to friends or have a good cry. I’m currently on medication and will be in the near future. My family and friends carried me through my journey. My husband, sister, and mother-in-law were my lifeline. They still are. I also connected with other survivors who could understand, through their experience, what I was going through.
“If I’m being brutally honest, I would say that my world collapsed when I got that diagnosis. And then I rebuilt it, with the pieces stacked differently. There is so much beauty in the rebuilding. ”
“This is me at the doctors office. I spent a lot of time here the first few months” ~Leyna Batta
What advice would you give to women about taking care of their breast health? In your opinion, what lifestyle changes can we all make in terms of diet and exercise as it relates to reducing the risk of cancer?
LEYNA:
My best advice would be to listen to your body. Advocate for yourself. Go to doctors that take your concerns seriously and are proactive in addressing them. Get all your annual exams and checkups. If you are in a situation where you are dealing with diagnosis/treatment options, pick your team wisely. It took me several appointments with different doctors to figure out the team I was comfortable with to save my life. Take that time. You will likely be dealing with this team for the rest of your very long life.
My doctor gave me this advice (summarized loosely): “In life, 50% you can control and 50% you can’t. Be impeccable at the 50% you can.” In that half you control is how you take care of your body. Exercise reduces the risk of cancer reoccurrence. So does maintain a healthy body weight and consuming healthy foods. My oncologist is also a big proponent of intermittent fasting and mainly plant-based eating.
Through your experience with breast cancer, how are you feeling today? When you look back at your journey, have you changed your priorities or the way you think about what’s important in life?
“This is after my “exchange surgery”, when they trade out me temporary expanders for implants.” ~Leyna Batta
LEYNA:
When I was newly diagnosed, my breast surgeon had a powerful conversation with me. He told me that he believed I was going to allow this crappy situation to change me for the better. He was right. I had no control of getting cancer. I did all the right things. I ate healthy. I exercised. I had no family history of breast cancer, no genetic markers. I could not control that this was my story. But I could control my reaction to it. I feel abundant joy in everyday things. I try to change the “I have” to “I get”. Instead of, I HAVE to chauffeur my children around to 247 places this weekend, I GET to do that! I think when you stare your own mortality in the eye and you come out on the other side, it can allow you to live more free[ly]. To be intentional with your time and who you spend it with.
I’m feeling really hopeful today. I look back on my journey and also forward. It is just that, a journey. Most days I can push cancer thoughts and worry to the back of my brain, some days they creep to the front. That is the reality of being a survivor. If you are lucky, there is life after cancer. I am unbelievably lucky.
Do you have any resources you can share for someone who may have recently found out they have breast cancer?
LEYNA:
You are not alone. There are many resources available to support you through this process. Life With Cancer, The Smith Center for Healing and the Arts, The Young Survival Coalition, Breastcancer.org, are just a few. Try to connect with a survivor, (unfortunately there are so many of us) so someone in one of your circles has likely had experience with it. I found it so helpful to talk with others who were in a similar situation.
Neha OzA
“Turning 50 is liberating. It feels like you finally have permission to be your authentic self and not have to answer to anyone else.” ~Neha Oza, celebrating her 50th birthday, May 2021
When and how did you find out you had breast cancer and what was your initial reaction?
I found out Nov 2019 through a routine annual mammogram. My initial reaction was that it was a wrong diagnosis because I do not have any family history of any cancers or any other risk factors.
How did you cope with knowing that you had breast cancer and who did you lean on for support during these uncertain times?
Neha with her husband and three sons
It was very difficult to wrap my arms around the reality of it because my father was very ill at the time and my focus was only to spend as much time with him as I could. It was a very surreal time in my life.
Luckily, I had my husband to take care of me and manage my medical treatments. Within two weeks of my mammogram, I had a biopsy, and a lumpectomy. A few days after my lumpectomy, my father passed. Within the following year, I had another lumpectomy, a bilateral mastectomy, and 2 reconstruction surgeries and another biopsy to rule out more cancer spread.
“What has changed? I am 100% more focused on ME. Nothing is more important than my personal well being and happiness. I’ve learned that my family, especially my kids, will be better if I’m better.”
What advice would you give to women about taking care of their breast health? In your opinion, what lifestyle changes can we all make in terms of diet and exercise as it relates to reducing the risk of cancer?
Neha out and about with girlfriends, summer 2021
My advice would be to not take your health for granted. Make the time to get your well[ness] exams and tests. Show up for the mammogram. It’s not fun, but can be life saving. A cancer diagnosis, no matter who you are, is devastating for the whole family but does not have to be a death sentence if you catch it early enough. Continue to eat well and exercise but most importantly take care of your mental well being. I believe Stress and anxiety can contribute tremendously to your health.
Through your experience with breast cancer, how are you feeling today? When you look back at your journey, have you changed your priorities or the way you think about what’s important in life?
I feel great. My journey has helped me to focus on myself more. I've always taken care of my eating habits and exercise, but now I practice yoga and mindfulness more. I try to not sweat the small stuff, or the big stuff, as much! The fear of [a] cancer recurrence never goes away but you learn to live with it and focus on living your life and not take each day for granted.
Do you have any resources you can share for someone who may have recently found out they have breast cancer?
My advice would be to reach out to someone who’s been through a similar situation. Everyone’s diagnosis is unique. Ask your doctor for a referral [to someone] who has gone through what you will go through. That person will be your best resource. Talk to as many people as you can to prepare for the journey. It’s difficult but it helps to have a support system in place.
Can you share more of your feelings about turning 50 as a survivor and going through Covid…how has your perspective about life changed and what is important in your life that wasn't always before.
Turning 50 is liberating. It feels like you finally have permission to be your authentic self and not have to answer to anyone else. In many ways, I feel so fortunate to have gone through my breast cancer journey before I turned 50 so that I can leave it behind me (fingers crossed) and share my journey with others in hopes of them not neglecting their well being.
Covid was a huge factor for my reconstruction. I had to wait almost 1 year before my surgeon could perform elective surgeries. I had expanders for that year. Normally, I would have had my surgery within 3 months. Expanders are painful and uncomfortable because they are thicker than normal implants, have a portal in them that feels like a metal plate which they use to inject saline to slowly expand the tissue and skin for the actual implants.
On a positive note, Covid was great because I could hibernate in my house and now worry about how I look or feel to the outside world. It was in some ways a good time to focus on myself and my family.
What has changed? I am 100% more focused on ME. Nothing is more important than my personal well being and happiness. I've learned that my family, especially my kids, will be better if I'm better. I used to put everyone else's needs before my own. Now I try to remind myself to drink my water, eat healthier, exercise and nourish my soul Before, I would make healthy meals and snacks for the kids and quickly shove crackers or chips in my mouth to keep going. Now I make sure to make extra for myself also and take the time to exercise!