Spotlight on awareness
Breast cancer conference to be held in November

Molly Barrett | staff writer
mbarrett@smcvt.edu

October is breast cancer awareness month and women all over Vermont are letting people know that the fight against cancer is as strong as ever. The annual Vermont Breast Cancer Conference will be held at the University of Vermont on Nov. 3 to raise awareness.

Tenth year strong

The Vermont Breast Cancer Conference is the 10th annual conference for the Vermont Cancer Center. According to its Web site, registration will open at 8 a.m., and events will end at 4:15 p.m. The day will feature art exhibits, a yoga session and a series of sessions from survivor stories to prevention information.

Carole Whitaker, communications director for the University of Vermont (UVM) College of Medicine and conference planner, says the event will provide educational outreach for survivors and all women interested in getting information about cancer.

Women should perform monthly breast self-examinations beginning at the age of 21. Larry Frisoli, photo

“It is our responsibility to reach out to make sure we have information to make good decisions about health care,” Whitaker says.

The UVM College of Medicine, Fletcher Allen Healthcare and the Cancer Center of Vermont will provide information and resources during the conference. In fact, there are so many possibilities for speakers, they want to pack in as many sessions as the hotel will hold, Whitaker says.

There will be some traditional events, but also some new events since information about breast cancer has been updated. Since this is the 10th anniversary of the event, a key point will be to celebrate the advances made over the last 10 years, Whitaker says.

“It’s a cross between an informational conference and a family reunion,” she says. “We re-inspire and rekindle the fire to fight this disease.”

Breast cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in women in Vermont, according to the Web site, but nearly 90 percent of women diagnosed will survive at least five years. In Vermont, 65 percent of breast cancers are diagnosed at an early stage.

“The energy here is generated by the women who come and participate,” Whitaker says.

A survivor's story

Abby Rowell, 20, from Irasburg, Vt. was 12 years old when her mom, Denise, was diagnosed with breast cancer.

“I was terrified,” Rowell says. “I was in disbelief.”

Her mother told her about the cancer on the way to one of Abby’s basketball games, she says. But it was not until Denise had a mastectomy months later that Abby was able to finally accept her mother’s cancer, she says.

“It can happen to anybody,” Rowell says. “It’s a very devastating thing.”  

In addition to the mastectomy, Denise underwent radiation and chemotherapy. Her mom is now cancer-free, Rowell says.  

Rowell has found ways to make her personal experience more positive, she says.

“I’m a lot more interested in diseases and cancer prevention,” Rowell says.

She considers her mother’s health, and her own health, a lot more than she used to, she says. She took a women’s studies course, during which she was able to study women’s health and explore the topic of breast cancer. It helped her to understand the disease that had disrupted her life at a young age and to accept what her mother went through, she says.

Early detection and self-examination are crucial to both raising awareness and maintaining health, she says.

“Take care of yourself, and don’t take your own health for granted,” Rowell says as words of advice to young women.

Awareness matters

Susan Jacques, director of health services at St. Michael’s College, wrote in an e-mail interview that although younger women have a lesser chance of breast cancer, all college women should perform monthly breast self-examinations by the age of 21 to check for lumps, thickness or other changes.

“Breast cancer is so common that everyone can name a mother, sister, aunt or friend who has been affected,” she wrote.

A bulletin board in health services educates students about breast cancer awareness. Larry Frisoli, photo

Women in their '20s should have clinical breast examinations performed by medical providers every three years, and also learn how to perform a self clinical breast examination. This way, the cancer can be detected at an early stage, when it is treatable, Jacques wrote.

Student Health Services provides free gynecological examinations, which include a breast examination and instruction on self breast examinations for women 21 and older, she wrote.

The only charge for students is for testing sent to outside laboratories, such as PAP smears and/or STI testing, she wrote.

Since October is breast cancer awareness month, Student Health Services and the Women’s Center collaborated to sponsor an educational table in Alliot on Oct. 16 for cancer awareness. It featured informational pamphlets, breast cancer awareness bracelets, and breast self-examination shower hangers.