October is breast cancer awareness month, now I always was a large supporter of the cause and would participate in fundraisers to help family friends in their fight, but never did I realize that this would soon become a part of my own family’s life. In 2014 my grandmother was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer and at that moment my whole world stopped. The poisonous venom of cancer had already stripped several of my loved ones away from me once and it was back to bite again. I could not fathom losing another family member to this disease and my mind was constantly racing at the thought that it would soon engulf my whole family. My grandmother was soon due to undergo aggressive treatment to attack the disease right to its core. After attending consultations at the prestige Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN the doctors had mapped out what the next step would be in order to win this battle. All though the doctor’s confidence was hard to deny, my family still shook with fear and soon divided themselves on opposite sides due to lack of compromise regarding care.

So you see cancer does not just infect the victim, it infects the whole support system. It weakens the strong barriers built to withhold even the strongest of storms. It weakens them to the point where they break on their own without even letting the slightest of warnings. The overwhelming anxiety then floods amongst the victims loved ones sending the whole system into chaos. Everyone is soon engulfed by panic and the poison of the disease begins to effect the thoughts of all those around you, turning them negative. Soon there is no more support system and the victim is left to battle on their own. In order to re-achieve a status of positivity the support system must compromise and begin to disregard all negative thoughts. During my grandmother’s treatment this happened many of times where we as a family needed to be reminded of the true gravity of the situation and learn that the important one in the equation was our grandmother, not us, not our fear, not the disease itself, but our grandmother. It is important to continue to look at the person not as if they are infected with poison but to look past their tired eyes and weak bones to appreciate the life that is still behind them.

I am lucky to say that my grandmother after receiving all of chemo, radiation, and surgeries, she is cancer free. Cancer took a lot from my family and will continue to take and take from society if we allow it too. We must stand up to cancer by continually taking the time to participate in awareness efforts and donating when we have the chance. As each advancement comes along we are steps closer to learning how to correctly fight this disease.

I encourage all of you whether you are effect by breast cancer or not, to support the fight by wearing pink or purchasing breast cancer products at your local stores. For you never know when it will soon effect you.