Before there were pink ribbons, Susan B. Komen events, “Save the Ta-Ta’s” t-shirts and breast cancer support groups, there was Betty Ford. At time when breast cancer survivors were forced to suffer in silence, she announced to the world she had had a mastectomy — and just a month after President Ford became President in 1974. A topic that had long been taboo was suddenly being discussed openly. It was no longer a “loss of your sexuality” or a something that “was not discussed in polite company.” It was a disease. A disease that threatened moms, daughters, and sisters. Breast cancer survivors got their first taste of support. How the disease was viewed was changed forever.
As a family member of a breast cancer survivor from that era, I wish to say thank you, Mrs. Ford. May you rest in the peace that you brought so many others.
Amen
She was quite the lady! She turned a spotlight on a horrible disease to help all who suffered or would suffer from it. May she rest in peace.
She was quite the lady. She blazed a trail that no one else dared to blaze and as you said, brought out of the closet a word that had long been buried there. And thanks to her bravery and boldness, cancer isn’t a death sentence any more.
I lost someone to breast cancer from that era and I say AMEN and thank you.
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