October Campbell

Dr. Butler
HED 232 A
October 29, 2015

Cancer occurs as a result of mutations, or abnormal changes, in the genes responsible for
regulating the growth of cells and keeping them healthy. The genes are in each cells nucleus,
which acts as the control room of each cell. Normally, the cells in our bodies replace
themselves through an orderly process of cell growth: healthy new cells take over as old ones die
out. But over time, mutations can turn on certain genes and turn off others in a cell. That
changed cell gains the ability to keep dividing without control or order, producing more cells just
like it and forming a tumor. (BreastCancer.org) Breast cancer can happen to men and women and
it is important to get screened for breast cancer to make sure you dont have any lumps or hard
spots. It is also very important to know your familys history and make sure you dont have a
greater chance of getting it because of genes. This month our class went to the health plex to
listen to a speaker give her testimony on how she survived breast cancer. She battled with breast
cancer for a while but she never gave up although on many occasions she said she wanted to. She
said she realized she had to live for her children and that God had put her through breast cancer
to open her eyes to something much greater.
When she first got the news that she had breast cancer she did not want to believe it and
she thought the doctor had her confused with another patient. She didnt want to believe that
something like this has happened to her. I dont think anyone does. She was homeless at the time
and still had children to provide for so even though the doctors told her she shouldnt be driving
and that she should be on bed rest she kept going to work putting herself at risk. She said she had
lost weight but she had never lost any of her hair except for a patch that fell out but she never

October Campbell
Dr. Butler
HED 232 A
October 29, 2015

lost her hair completely. However she did say she donated her hair to locks of love for quite
some time until her son asked her to stop chopping off her hair. When she was free of breast
cancer she gained the weight back that the doctors said she wouldnt and she continues to share
her story with the community as well as others battling cancer as well as survivors like herself.
Her story really moved me because going through something like that with children to
take care of can be a huge burden on someone. I can only imagine the pain and stress this illness
caused her but she managed to get through it. She motivated me that day she spoke and brought
me to tears to the point that I could not even sit to hear the rest of her story. You can never
overlook anyones struggle or think youre worst off than someone else because you never know
their situation. Her fight with breast cancer is like my fight with school and the daily stresses of a
teenager. She had everything possible thrown at her but she caught every bad mishap and
overcame it and I commend her for that. I dont know many people that strong and willing to
press on when dealing with something like this. I guess thats the thing about God he only takes
his toughest soldiers to the biggest battle and I think that is what he did with this woman. And
whatever it is that he wanted her to open her eyes to she sees the bigger picture now and wont
lose sight of her goal or focus. Breast cancer was merely a reminder to her to stay a fighter and to
never give up and thats what she is a fighter and a survivor of Breast cancer.