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Profile: Esther Tatum-Waring
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Esther Tatum-Waring is 60 years old and proud to admit it. A grandmother of two and step-grandmother of seven,
she is happily married to the man who is her best friend. When she was diagnosed with breast cancer at her local
hospital in Brooklyn, her husband suggested they get a second opinion at the
world-renowned Memorial Sloan-Kettering in Manhattan.
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Profile: Debbie Burchett
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"My Primary Goal is to Make a Difference in Someone's Life Each Day."
In 1992, when Debbie Burchett was 44 years
old, she learned she had breast cancer. She had a mastectomy, reconstructive
breast surgery and chemotherapy. Despite her treatment, Debbie was able to
continue teaching music to children in elementary school in her hometown of
Winston-Salem, NC. She lost her hair, but gained a new perspective on life.
Debbie explains, "All of the encouragement and support I received from family
(especially my wonderful husband Alan), friends and neighbors, as well as
strangers, overwhelmed me. I began to see God's love in everyone. I was so
grateful, I wanted to give back what I received." |
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Profile: Michelle Hagen |
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 Michelle Hagen
was just 28 years old when she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Unfortunately,
she had a lump in her neck for three years prior to that which was never
correctly diagnosed. Finally, Michelle scheduled a needle biopsy. One week
later, on her first day of work at a new job, Michelle's doctor called to inform
her that she had a malignancy and needed to have her thyroid gland removed.
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Profile: Amy Taylor |
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 In 1998, 39-year old Amy Taylor
discovered a lump in her breast during a self-exam. A baseline mammogram
revealed nothing; her primary doctor identified it as a fibrocystic change. One
year later, the lump - and Amy's concern-had grown. A subsequent mammogram and
fine-needle aspiration confirmed Amy's worst fear: breast cancer involving the
lymph nodes. Inevitably, Amy's first question was, "Why me?" A non-drinker and
non–smoker, she had no family history of cancer. Although her strong faith
helped her conclude that this experience must be happening for a reason, she
prayed for courage, especially in dealing with Ashley, her 10-year old daughter.
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Profile: Sonia Gurbaxani |
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 When Sonia Gurbaxani was diagnosed
with stage II breast cancer in 1994, she was 34 years old and had just
celebrated her third wedding anniversary. "I wasn’t feeling well, and I went to
the doctor expecting to hear that I was pregnant," she says. "Cancer was the
furthest thing from my mind. I didn’t even know what an oncologist was."
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Profile: Lisa Muccilo |
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Lisa before
her make-over |
Lisa wearing make-
up and Anne 130 |
As an undergraduate majoring in civil engineering,
Lisa Muccilo was a member of a select group; the boys in her class would pass
her notes saying she was the prettiest girl in class. Of course, she adds with a
laugh, she was also the only girl in the class. Now Lisa is a member of another
select group: women under 40 who are battling breast cancer. Only 32, Lisa has
been at war with cancer since she was 27, shortly after her mother's diagnosis
at the age of 47. Lisa tried attending her mother's support group, but it was
hardly ideal; she was more than 20 years younger than the other women.
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Profile: Karen Pollitz |
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"I will never forget the day — April 2, 1996 — that I
was diagnosed with breast cancer. Getting a mammogram was one thing on a long
list of things I had to do that day. Once I heard the diagnosis, my day kind of
fell apart," says Karen Pollitz, who was 37 at the time of her diagnosis, with
two small children. "The feeling you get after you heard that diagnosis is an
instant loss of control. It's like a free fall." The doctor recommended a
lumpectomy, then chemotherapy. The thought of undergoing chemotherapy was
especially scary for Karen.
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