Tour De Pink for Breast Cancer Research...Here's Why We Want to Be There!

Tomorrow is our second Miles for Mitzie team event!!  A small group of us will be riding in the Tour De Pink near Prairie View A&M tomorrow.  This event is hosted by the Pink Ribbons Project, whose mission is to fight breast cancer through education and the support of proper screening for the medically under served funding and outreach initiatives.

You may wonder why 'Miles for Mitzie' would be interested in being a part of a ride that assists breast cancer research and education when we are trying to become an organization geared towards fighting ovarian cancer.  The answer is that breast cancer and ovarian cancer have a lot of similarities, especially in the fact that women who have a specific gene mutation are much more susceptible to getting both cancers.  This is why genetic testing is so super important, especially if you have a family history of either disease.  Learning about any gene mutations that raise your risk to any cancers can help your doctors direct care and early prevention tools/methods and ideas your way.  Thus, potentially saving your life! 

But, you do not necessarily have to have a gene mutation to be considered at a higher risk for developing these forms of cancer.  This is where your family history is critical to getting the best care for your future!

Talking about your family history is critical.  Cancer, historically, was rarely talked about. Even just 10 years ago it was difficult to find answers.  Talk to your family members and encourage them to open up to you about any medical history.  Let me give you an example really quick from my own family history:

My grandmother on my mom's side had breast cancer twice...and survived!!  She was an amazing example of courage and faith in battling cancer.  I wish she was here today so I could walk her down some of the awesome survivor lines at many of the breast cancer awareness events I've been too. We knew about breast cancer in our family because it was right in our face growing up, but we did not know about ovarian cancer (a silent disease that's often misunderstood by doctors, too).  Once my mother was diagnosed with ovarian cancer she began to do some research and found a history of stomach cancer in some of the women on her side of the family.  Ovarian cancer and stomach cancer look very similar near the end of life, and given the generation of the women in her research we concluded that they had probably had ovarian cancer that evolved into looking like stomach cancer at the end of their lives.  Later on, when my grandmother was also diagnosed with ovarian cancer as well, we pretty much 'knew'!  Now, with this knowledge, my sister and I carry this information to our gynecologists, who then say "You are at an obvious high risk for developing both breast and ovarian cancer" - despite the fact that we do not seem to be carriers of the specific gene mutation most doctors look for when assessing care.  Our family history has led us to earlier mammograms, ultrasounds and blood work that has, thankfully, elevated our level of care and will save our lives from ovarian and breast cancer!  I am proof that simply talking about your family history can change so much for yourself and all the generations before and after you!  So talk!!!

Help us cheer on our the Miles for Mitzie team at Tour De Pink because they are raising awareness and helping open up the discussions of both breast and ovarian cancer.  Rides like this save lives! 

Special thanks to team captain Meredith Sharp for putting the whole thing together.  I'll also put a list of riders and the miles they earned after the ride on Sunday.  I'll be out there doing anywhere from 46 - 63 miles...on my super cute PINK bike!!!