January Is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month
When I was told that I had cervical cancer twenty years ago, I had two small children and was scared to death. Not only did the doctors mention cervical cancer, but they expressed some fear that it had already turned into ovarian cancer. My first thought was what would happen to my family if I was not well enough to take care of them. Question after question went racing through my mind.
My wonderful husband, our parents, other family and friends could only do so much. Children need their mothers! I started writing down things for my husband so just in case something happened to me, he could tell our boys about me and what type of mother, wife, daughter, sister, aunt and friend I was. I wanted my sons to know about our awesome God, how to treat others and how much I loved them. The list could have gone forever. Once the shock was over, the doctor told us what I needed to have done and it needed to be done quickly. So I had all the tests done and within weeks I had to have a hysterectomy. No more children for us. We always wanted a big family, but it wasn't in God's plan for us.
I still have my notebook with all my notes in it, and once a year I get it out and still write something in it. I always thank God first for my wonderful life, and ask for his forgiveness for not being a better person because he gave me a second shot at life. Then I ask for more forgiveness, because I always feel I fell short of God's goals for me in my life. Over the years I've had other scares, like when they found lumps in my breasts, and my wonderful sister-in-law who passed away in May of 2013 from breast cancer helped me though the scare when I had to have several breast biopsies done. Once again I worried about who was going to take care of my children. However, this time I was more worried about my four-legged children (my dogs), as my own children had grown up into wonderful young adults. I thanked my lucky stars and God that nothing came back positive. All was balanced in my world again.
It is very important that every female 18 years of age or older, those who are having intercourse, or any woman who has any family history of cancer has a Pap test done to help detect dysplasia that can lead into cervical cancer (and can also lead into many other type of female problems). Knowing our own bodies is very important. We know to do a self-breast exam monthly to help detect any changes in our breasts to fight against breast cancer, but how many of us really know how to look for signs of dysplasia, cervical or ovarian cancers? These two web pages, http://www.webmd.com/cervical cancer or http://www.OCRF.org, explain some of the information on the symptoms that can occur. The web is full of information about all of these cancers, but please, please, please talk to your OBGYN if you notice any change in your body. It could save your life. Your doctors are really the only ones who can get you the proper testing and treatments you may need. Web information can be great, but no website will ever be more effective than a doctor's exam.
My wish for this new year of 2014 is that researchers will come one step closer to finding a cure for all cancers.
Bordas & Bordas is dedicated to help raise money for breast cancer with the Driving Fore A Cure golf outing in October. Please log on to the Bordas & Bordas web page to learn more about this event.
Cancer doesn't discriminate. It doesn't care how old or young you are, where or if you go to church, or if you are male or female. It can find you, if you don't find it first.
