Olivia and Cruz
Left to right: Olivia and Cruz
By Cruz, a Sister Study participant from Arizona
You might think that in a family of seven sisters and one brother the odds of one of us getting a serious illness are pretty high, yet that thought never entered my mind. After all, longevity runs in the family, our parents are healthy, we are all active and try to eat the right things.
In July of 1994, we had just celebrated Olivia’s (the sixth child) 40th birthday with a big party. Then in October she surprised me by calmly saying, “By the way, I’m going to the doctor tomorrow, because I found a lump in my breast.” My first reaction was, “How can this be? There is no history of breast cancer in the family. Why is this happening to the princess of the family?”
Our entire family was very supportive and encouraging. Olivia’s attitude was that she would beat this disease, fight it with all she had, especially her faith. I offered to do anything! It helped that I live close by, that my children were grown and that we have a close relationship. I have been with her through the lumpectomy, radiation, chemo treatments, hair loss, emotional ups and downs, support group meetings, and fundraising events.
I joined the Sister Study because I want to do my part in getting the word out about this dreadful disease and to find a cure for it. As a Latina I feel even more responsibility to participate because I want the risk factors for breast cancer in my specific Latina community to be studied. Five of the six sisters are participating in the Sister Study because all of us want to help prevent future generations from going through what Olivia did.