Weekly Round-Up
Welcome, dear readers. I’m so glad you’re here.
We’re now past the halfway mark of Pinktober, a time that always brings mixed emotions. As Barbara reminds us the urgency and financial support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month often fade as October ends, the need for research, treatment, and community support endures all year long. Abigail echoes this reminder through the lens of metastatic breast cancer (MBC), weaving her personal experience with broader data. She urges readers to understand their individual risks, ask questions about genetic testing and screening, and think carefully about where their donations go this month.
Suzanne reflects on this same season through another critical perspective—her ongoing work to highlight that disabled people get breast cancer too.
In an excerpt from her memoir Cancer Was Not a Gift & It Didn’t Make Me a Better Person, Nancy revisits the day her life changed with a single phone call. She captures the unbearable tension of waiting for biopsy results, the shock of hearing the words “you have a cancer,” and the strange mix of disbelief, anger, and numbness that follows.
Beth writes about the disorientation that comes after treatment—the sense that cancer hasn’t just ravaged her body but stolen her sense of self. Returning to work after chemo and radiation, she realises the more profound loss is one of identity, and her essay is both raw and deeply relatable.
Gabby a 17-year survivor of inflammatory breast cancer, opens up about the hidden struggles that follow treatment—those physical, emotional, and spiritual adjustments that continue long after the world expects you to be “better.”
Sue examines the critical shortage of healthcare workers and outlines five pragmatic strategies to address the crisis.
And to close this week’s round-up, Connie takes a contemplative walk through life’s various phases — from the frenetic years of career and parenting to the slower pace of retirement — and reflects on what it means to say you’re “livin’ the dream.”
Until next time,
May you find moments of rest and renewal in the days ahead.
Much love always
Marie xxx
