Making Strides

Not long ago my mother was diagnosed with stage one breast cancer. It was a scary time for my entire family but we were very fortunate that the cancer was caught early. The last few years have seen amazing improvements in the treatments which are available and after undergoing treatment for the disease, my mother is cancer free. Breast cancer is 95% survivable when caught early but for many women it's not found until much later when treatment becomes much more difficult.

I recently signed up for the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk that will be held in Grand Rapids on Saturday, October 14th at 9:00 in the morning. The purpose of the walk is to raise money and awareness for the American Cancer Society. They use the money to fund research into more effective treatments, educate the public about prevention and early detection, advocate for the rights of patients and survivors, and provide services to help people cope with cancer.

If you're interested in either donating to a good cause or in joining in for the walk, you can see my personal Making Strides site. Odds are good that someone you know will be affected by breast cancer at some point in their life. Early detection is critical and even if you don't donate I'd recommend going to the site and checking out some of the information about breast cancer and the screening guidelines... even women in their twenties should be screened at least every three years.