Calendar brings life-saving message

BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS SERVE AS MODELS

BY MELISSA PINGETON

NEW LEADER STAFF WRITER
SPENCER — Breast cancer has been a part of Mary Beth Gibson’s family for three generations, and now she is hoping to spread awareness about the cancer to young women through a calendar created by her support group Beyond Boobs! Gibson lived in Spencer until the age of 8 when she moved to Virginia with her parents in the 1970s. She currently resides in Williamsburg, Va., where the support group is located. When her mother died of breast cancer, she was buried in Spencer. With both her mother, Diane (Lamoureux) Morrill, and grandmother diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 40, Gibson went in for a mammogram when she was 40. When the results came back fine, she thought she was in the clear. “I dodged the bullet. I made it,” said Gibson about her reaction to her mammogram results.

A month later, in April 2006, Gibson found a lump during a selfbreast exam. When she had it checked out, it was 4 centimeters long and in her lymph nodes. Gibson endured rounds of chemotherapy and radiation, as well as a double mastectomy. She finished her treatments in February.

In September 2006, Gibson met René Bowditch at a retreat for breast cancer survivors. At the time
Gibson was still in the midst of treatment, while Bowditch was out of treatment for five years. The two women spoke about the challenges facing young women with breast cancer and the limited resources available to address their needs and concerns. Gibson pointed out that at the retreat, only three of the 20 cancer survivors were in their 40s or younger. After the retreat, Bowditch invited Gibson and the three other women to her house to meet, as well as two other women that she knew.

From that gathering at Bowditch’s home, the support group Beyond Boobs! was born. Gibson said the women named themselves Beyond Boobs! because they didn’t want to be defined by their status as breast cancer survivors.

To date, there are 27 members in the support group and the only requirement for membership is that prospective members must be pre-menopausal. The name Beyond Boobs! came about after Bowditch, who is in her 50s, began calling the women “young breast cancer victors.”
“We needed something a little more hip,” recalled Gibson. After brainstorming, the group came up with the name Beyond Boobs!

“It’s to communicate that we’ve gotten beyond the disease that originated in our breasts,” explained Gibson. “The essence of femininity is not contained in our breasts; it’s way beyond it,” she added. Gibson noted a common “theme” among these survivors was late diagnosis.

“Our doctors weren’t looking for it,” said Gibson. For herself, breast cancer was a strong part of her family history, she said, and her doctor “wasn’t sending me for the appropriate surveillance.” Gibson described another woman in the group who had a late diagnosis, despite complaining to her doctors for two years about pains in her breast. The doctor told the woman, “Don’t worry about it, it’s not breast cancer; you’re too young.” Gibson said the woman is doing “doing OK,” but “her prognosis isn’t as good at it would be” if she had an early diagnosis.

Looking for a way to educate young women about breast cancer, the idea for the calendar was suggested by someone in the group. The calendar, called “A Calendar to Live By,” features images of breast cancer survivors, and each month has a specific word that is represented by the women. For example, January’s word is “celebrate” and the model is dancing. Gibson is the April model, and the word for that month is “ b e l i e v e . ”

“It’s very tasteful,” said Gibson. “We wanted to inspire people and show that life is worth living and worth celebrating every day.”

M o n i c a Sigmon, who is, as Gibson described, “very community oriented” and “very
talented,” did the p h o t o g r aphy. Sigmon has been recognized by Kodak film as “photographer of the year to watch.”

The women in the calendar range from age 29-59. Gibson noted that the 59-year-old survivor, Tish, was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 26 and shows that “you can live a great, long life.” The calendar also includes 11 pages of resource information. “We’re trying to save life, it’s the whole point of the calendar — by sharing the lessons that we learned so that women don’t have to walk the same journey that we’ve had to walk,” said Gibson.

Ten percent of the proceeds will be given to the Susan G. Komen Foundation, and the rest will go
toward the Beyond Boobs! Inc., a nonprofit “with the intention of not just education women but to inspire them to take action,” Gibson said. Gibson said the group has “grand plans,” hoping to visit college campuses, medical communities and corporate offices “just to educate and inspire women to take care of them.”
“
A Calendar to Live By” is available at Tidbits, which is located in the Big Y plaza on Route 9 in Spencer.

For more information
about Beyond Boobs!, or to purchase the calendar online, visit www.beyondboobsinc.org .

Melissa Pingeton may be reached
at (508) 909-4143, or by e-mail at
mpingeton@stonebridgepress.com.