The football teams have taken off their pink, the walkers have put their shoes in the closet and the White House is back to being white. Was it all worth it?
It’s hard to measure in concrete terms. There are no central tallies of how much money was raised during Breast Cancer Awareness Month. There is
no list of breast cancer patients who got a much needed emotional boost from knowing people care. And, there’s no way to know how many women who had been putting off a mammogram finally got one because of all the attention to the disease.
What is absolutely certain, however, is that it is a failure if we shove our concern about cancer into the closet along with those walking shoes. We can’t stop being aware of breast cancer just because there’s not pink everywhere shouting at us to remember.
The numbers haven’t changed just because of a month of activity, no matter how intense it was. There will be 232,340 new cases of breast cancer diagnosed this year.
Breast Cancer Awareness month will be a success only if the awareness continues. Your health is just as important today as it was in October. You need to take care of yourself every bit as much now as then. What will you do about that? Are you eating healthier? Finding ways to exercise? Even small changes can make a big difference.
And, along with looking after your wellness, are you doing what you can to monitor your health? You can take charge by doing monthly breast self-exams, getting a mammogram once a year and having other exams recommended by your doctor. Remember, you are always important regardless of the month.
Ella Health 