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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 1, 1992)
18 T a u g u st 198 3 ▼ ju s t o u t Preaching the gospel of early M ost at risk are women over 50 who delayed childbearing until after 30 or who have no children; who have a family history of breast cancer; who have meat, dairy and coffee in their diet; who had ‘early’ onset of their periods or “late“ menopause; or who have had previous incidence of breast cancer. Yet, 75 percent of all breast cancers occur in women with no risk factors. by Susan Baker while the cancer is still localized in the breast. particularly because sexuality is central to lesbian n January of 1989, as part of a regular There are three main methods of detection. identity. In a heterosexist society that encourages physical, Maureen Carson had her first The monthly breast self-examination (commonly us to define ourselves by whom we sleep with, a mammogram. It revealed a calcification called BSE) is performed by a woman in her own lesbian who has lost a breast often ends up fight in the ducts of the 42-year-old European- home. Raising one arm over her head, she presses ing a double battle for her sexuality. While still American woman’s breast, a condition the flats of her fingers against the breast, covering doctors told her was almost always malignant. facing A homophobia in the larger world, she must the entire area, including the area between the struggle with the sexuality and self-image issues biopsy confirmed this. Ten days later Carson had breast and the underarm, using small circular wrapped up in the loss of a breast. a "simple" mastectomy, removing her entire right motions. Because the texture of breast tissue The media images of who gets breast cancer breast. varies from woman to woman, she herself has an further increases lesbian invisibility, putting us at As a lesbian, Carson does not fit the media advantage over medical professionals in knowing risk. Lesbians may have a “not me” attitude. stereotype of the white middle-class wife and the normal feel o f her breasts and thus is able to Even worse, lesbians may be less likely to sched mother who develops breast cancer. Carson is just recognize any irregularities. The second method ule regular gynecological and breast examina one of an ever-growing number o f American is a manual exam, like the BSE, in this case tions. women who develop breast cancer annually. performed by a physician or nurse practitioner Though W ilkins’s lesbian support group is Unlike the 45,000 women a year who succumb to looking for suspicious lumps. The third method now defunct, both she and Carson note the impor the disease, Carson did not. Free of cancer three is mammography. A mammogram is an X ray of tance o f lesbian support for lesbians with breast years later, she considers herself fortunate. “I had this terrible, terrible thing happen to me, and my life came out on the other side so much better. I decided to live for myself during that time. ... I learned to look at the trees, and the sunshine and the flowers. It changed my life radically. I am glad I am who I am right now.” The support of her friends and loved ones, according to Carson, is what got her through it. Upon hearing of her condition, friends immedi ately formed a support group, accompanying her to doctor appointments, listening to her worries and even providing financial support. This group reached out to the larger lesbian community, which responded with cards, flowers and money to help cover medical expenses. Therapist Barbara Wilkins, R.N., A.C.S.W., points to recent studies showing that breast-can cer patients involved in support groups live sig nificantly longer than those patients who have no comparable support network. Though she is now concentrating on individual and couples counsel ing, Wilkins did facilitate the Portland support group for lesbian breast-cancer patients that Carson 'Body image wet definitely a factor, and I <£dn't think it would be, ’ laid Maureen Canon (above). 'I never really thought much about was a part of. In this safe environment, the women my body (before wrgeryl Every step I took weanevr. ahowen at the Y, getting into hot tuba with tiende. Hwaaalnewbabyatepa.’ were able to confront their common fears, their cancer. Carson felt that the “very straight, very worries about images of themselves and their the internal structure of the breast that, when read relationships with partners. middle-class” woman from the ACS who visited by an experienced radiologist, can reveal a tumor her during recovery “didn’t really speak to me.” before it would be discernible by manual exami The loss of a breast often creates what Wilkins As Wilkins puts it, “It would be so much more describes as a “profound grief response.” An nation. That head start in treatment can greatly already painful experience is only exacerbated by helpful if we could talk to an old dyke who would increase a woman’s chances for survival. tell us not to worry.” society's expectations of the female form, making Good news? Of course. But that may not be the loss of a breast a particularly powerful psy Despite the lack of outreach to the lesbian the whole story. The American Cancer Society chological blow. “Boidy image was definitely a community, education is imperative. In fact, the recommends a baseline mammogram at age 35, lesbian community as a whole may actually be at factor, and I didn’t think it would be,” said Carson. giving radiologists a basis for comparison with a slightly higher risk than the general population “I never really thought much about my body mammograms. From ages 40 to 50, the ACS [before surgery]. Every step I took was new: because a lesbian is statistically more likely to recommends a mammogram every two years, and remain childless. Those currently considered showers at the Y, getting into hot tubs with friends. one annually after age 50. But, as we all know, X It was all new baby steps.” most at risk are women over 50 who delayed rays are radiation, and radiation is a major factor childbearing until after 30 or who have no chil Breasts are often such a major component of a in triggering cancer grow th. Dr. John A. McDougall, director of the McDougall Program at St. Helena Hospital and Health Center in Deer Park, Calif., states, “The human organ most sen sitive to the cancer-causing effects of radiation is the female breast. It is even more sensitive than the bone marrow, the lung, and the thyroid gland.” Mammography is, however, the best di agnostic tool the medical community now has. But Centers for Disease Control statistics indicate that 75 percent of all breast cancers occur in women with no risk factors. The message then on mammography is decid woman’s feelings of sexuality that many women dren; who have a family history of breast cancer; edly mixed. Carson, who confesses to an aversion report a process of relearning to be comfortable who have meat, dairy and coffee in their diet; who toward traditional medicine, also acknowledges with their sexuality after the removal of a breast. had "early" onset of their periods (before 12) or that it saved her life. Her cancer did not form a The American Cancer Society published a pam "late" menopause (after 55); or who have had lump and would not have been detectable by a phlet entitled “Sexuality and Cancer’’ to help previous incidence of breast cancer. manual exam. But Carson has a strong history of women with this adjustment. But the pamphlet Because there is as yet no cure, breast-cancer cancer in her family, including a grandmother makes no mention whatsoever of lesbians or their specialists preach the gospel of early detection. who died of breast cancer. The ACS recommen unique concerns. This invisibility can only hinder The goal is to detect and begin treatment of a dations apply not just to high-risk women but to the recovery of a lesbian breast-cancer patient. cancerous tumor as early as possible, hopefully all women. I Though the government offers no solid explanation, the women interviewed in this article almost universally blamed their cancers on two things: our overly fatty diet, particularly meat contaminated with growth hormones, and secondly, the pollution of our environment. Despite the emphasis on detection, it is still not prevention. What actually causes the number-one killer of women aged 35 to 50? No one seems to know. According to the U .S. General Accounting Office’s own report. Breast Cancer 1971-91, “Little is known about the factors responsible for variations of breast cancer incidence in the gen eral population.” Indeed, so little is understood that survival rates for breast cancer remain barely unchanged since 1930, even as th$ numbers of women developing the disease have skyrocketed, the rate of breast cancer in 1988 being 125.8 percent greater than what it was in 1973. Though the government offers no solid expla nation, the women I spoke with while researching this article almost universally blamed their can cers on two things: our overly fatty diet, particu larly meat contaminated with growth hormones, and secondly, the pollution of our environment. “I never worried that I was going to die,” said Carson. “I was just so angry that we have done so much to our world that we are getting cancer.” In response to the terrifying statistics, more and more women are demanding greater funding and increased research into the basic mechanisms o f the disease. Loli Champion is the president of the Portland chapter of the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Recognizing that, in Champion’s words, “Breast cancer is still not a priority in this country,” the Komen Foundation has committed itself to education, to providing low -cost mammograms to medically underserved women and to funding further research. The Komen Foundation has given over $10 million in grants, making it the fourth-largest source of breast-cancer research funds. Recog nizing the success of AIDS advocacy groups in securing increased funding, breast-cancer groups have stepped up their lobbying efforts. Some officials have countered by insisting that any funds reallocated for breast cancer would have to come out of current AIDS funding. The message to women is obvious: it is selfish to fight for your own lives. Taking away funds from AIDS re search is not the point at all, says Champion. "We want to raise awareness. They found funds for AIDS without redividing the health-care pie. We want them to reassign funds for breas* cancer. This is an epidemic among women. Without a cause we’ll never have a cure.” Locally, the Komen Foundation will be spon soring an all-women “Race for the Cure” in Portland on October 11. Champion and her group are actively seeking women o f all ethnicities, ages, orientations and abilities to participate in this 5K fundraiser. The Foundation will also have a health pavilion at the race site with information on prevention and early detection. The all-volun teer organization will donate 25 percent of all funds raised to research, with the remainder going to direct outreach and education programs. Champion is impassioned about the fight against breast cancer. A survivor herself, she emphasizes that high turnout is imperative for this event and for this message. “If we women don’t start showing numbers, we will never get medical care. But I have to take to task us. We have the most voting power of any,group in this country . . . . I f our children were dying in these numbers, we would have been yelling years ago. When it comes to ourselves, we don’t have our own per mission to stand up for ourselves. We have to change that.” For information about the Susan G. Komen Foundation call (503) 636-1905.
