WE ARE BRIGHT PINK

Genna
Before I was born, I lost my great-grandmother to ovarian. I never met her, but to this day I morn her death. When I was 8, I lost my grandmother to ovarian; to this day one of the most inspirational women in my life. The 25th anniversary of her death is next week and it literally feels like it was yesterday. This year my mom will turn 62, the age my grandmother was when she died. I feel so blessed to have my mom with me and my daughter, age 3, and look forward to many, many more years together. We cherish every moment-- we see each other every day and my mom now carries on a relationship with my daughter that I missed out on with my grandmother. We have known for years that we are gene carriers, but even before that we knew we were targets. I always expected ovarian, but never expected breast. That was the difference my positive test results made--not only was I target for ovarian, I also was a target for breast--who would have thought? In my twenties I attempted to plan my life out, working my way backwards from 35, the age I was to have a hysterectomy. I really wanted to be settled in my hometown with a stable job, healthy marriage, 2 kids and a dog. My plan seemed to be working out, except for the healthy marriage portion . . . needless to say, I'm now a single mom of a beautiful 3 year old, whom I may not have had but not for my positive test results! (My daughter is truly a gift.) Life is funny, actually, as my friend Kam reminds me, life is what happens when you're busy making plans! Oh, yes, I do have the dog too. I love my life, my family and (usually) my dog, and because of those reasons, opted for prophylactic surgery this year. Needless to say, I was floored to find out 3 days post-op that I actually had pre-cancer cells in one of my breasts. I've spent so much of my life praying and volunteering for a cure. As far as I'm concerned, we have a choice now--a choice not otherwise available to my great-grandmother or grandmother. In many ways for me, this choice is a cure--not the most attractive cure, but a 99% cure none-the-less. I am truly grateful to Lindsay and all of the other Bright Pink Girls for normalizing this choice and getting the word out to so many others who are not as fortunate to have access to doctors who take a special interest in this area. Now I'm venturing off into the dating world again, post-surgery, I will surely have some great stories to share! (btw, the results are ridiculous--I'm so 19 again!) I'm always available for a great chat, laugh or cry--just ask Lindsay for my contact info!