Breast Cancer Survivors Walk the Runway to Support Their Own

When you hear that someone has been diagnosed with breast cancer, the first person to pop in your mind likely isn’t the mom next to you in the school pickup lane. It’s your grandmother’s best friend. Or that nice older lady down the street.

Yet, each day, young moms – who just like us are balancing preschoolers and office deadlines and housework – are also battling breast cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, in 2009, there were 190,000 new women diagnosed with breast cancer, and 18,600 of those diagnosed were younger than age 45.

Thankfully, for the past ten years, the Young Women’s Breast Cancer Program at Siteman Cancer Center has become a beacon of support,

connecting young breast cancer patients to one another and empowering them to take on the biggest challenge of their lives. On September 16, the Celebrate Style runway show will give some of these women a platform to strut their stuff and raise funds for the organization that helped them beat cancer.

How YWBCP makes a difference

Breast cancer is different for younger women not only from an emotional standpoint, but a physical one as well. Said Jennifer Ivanovich, director of YWBCP, “Breast cancer in young women is more aggressive and requires more treatment than we typically see in their older counterparts. Treatments can span well over a year when you think about surgery, chemo and radiation, and even longer if she chooses to have reconstructive surgery. Young women have the lowest survival rate of all women diagnosed, and women who do survive have the longest time period to live with side effects.”

In addition, these young women face a variety of challenges after cancer, such as infertility, early menopause, and issues of sexuality. Plus, they’re thrown headfirst into complex healthcare management issues they must learn to navigate – an overwhelming undertaking for a woman whose experience with medical decisions has likely been limited to a two-day hospital stay after giving birth.

For cancer patients, support is essential, yet many women under age 45 are limited to groups where they’re the youngest members by a good 20 to 30 years. Explained Ivanovich, “Women want their peer group to understand what they’re going through –  where they can say ‘I get sick every time I change my kid’s diaper because of the chemo.’ Maybe a grandmother who’s 75 never had that experience. Many young women want more than the ‘Oh honey, I’m sorry you’re going through that’ – they want to talk with someone their age who understands.”

At YWBCP, these incredible women find hope – hope in a helping hand, a shoulder to cry on, and a sympathetic ear from young women just like them who have faced the same challenges.

Each year, YWBCP serves young women in the metro area by offering everything from a peer network to support groups to a book club, helping women build lifelong friendships and discover a support system to help them at every step in their treatment and recovery. In addition, YWBCP hosts a one-day symposium each year to inform and inspire women. “When a young woman with breast cancer walks into a room with 100 other women who’ve been diagnosed, it’s incredibly powerful and overwhelming. Just to be in the presence of other women who get it is very comforting and uplifting.”

Fundraising through fashion

On September 16, you can help support YWBCP and find some great new looks for your closet by attending the first annual Celebrate Style – A Runway Show for Survivors and Their Fans, the third in a family of events to support YWBCP, which also includes Celebrate Fitness and Celebrate Spot.

“We’re showcasing local boutiques and designers that we feel are up and coming on the St. Louis fashion scene,” said Hannah Vargon, co-chair of Celebrate Style. “We’re especially excited to be working with survivors from the YWBCP as models in the show, each wearing a signature pink look. We feel it’s important to associate a face with the cause as it makes our mission real for the event participants.”

As survivors walk the runway in looks from Project Runway’s A.J. Thouvenot, Conjetta Fàshion and Haus Designs by Sierra Moses among others, they’re not only showing the world what a survivor looks like, they’re raising awareness about a disease young women need to take more seriously.

Celebrate Style will take place at Moulin Events and Meetings beginning at 6 p.m. Tickets for the event are $40 and include general seating for the show as well as complimentary hors d’ouerves and a cupcake bar. To learn more, visit www.celebrate-style.org.

By Nicole Plegge, Lifestyle Blogger for SmartParenting