The power of connection during the breast cancer journey
A breast cancer diagnosis can quickly introduce a new vocabulary of tests, treatments and decisions. But alongside the medical questions often come deeply personal ones: What will treatment be like? How will I feel? Will life ever feel normal again?
Family, friends and healthcare providers can be invaluable sources of support. Yet there is something uniquely reassuring about connecting with someone who can say, “I’ve been there.”
“Connecting with others gives survivors the sense that they are not alone,” said Anne Hammack, RN, BSN, clinical coordinator at St. Mary’s Breast Center at Marshall Health Network. “They can learn so much from others who have already gone through what they are going through now or are getting ready to go through.”
For someone newly diagnosed, that might mean talking with a survivor who can answer practical questions, share lessons learned or understand a fear that can be difficult to explain to someone who has not experienced cancer.
Melissa Sheppard, RN, BSN, OCN, manager of the Cabell Huntington Hospital Breast Health Center and Edwards Comprehensive Cancer Center Diagnostic Breast Center at Marshall Health Network, said support groups can also give patients space to talk openly about concerns they may hesitate to share with loved ones.
“Patients and survivors can share their victories, challenges, fears and questions with people who truly understand the cancer journey,” Sheppard said.
For those who have never attended a support group, misconceptions can sometimes keep them from participating. Some expect a somber gathering or worry they will be asked to share before they are ready.
In reality, participants choose how much they want to share, and meetings often include laughter, friendship and celebration. Groups may also feature experts discussing nutrition, exercise, mental health, stress management and the long-term effects of treatment.
“These are women who want to help the next patients going through what they experienced one, five, 10 or 20 years ago,” Hammack said.
And the need for that connection does not necessarily end when treatment does.
During active treatment, appointments and therapies can provide a sense of forward motion. Once treatment ends and those routines become less frequent, survivors may face new concerns, from adjusting to life after treatment to fears about recurrence and managing long-term physical and emotional effects.
That is also when the role someone plays in a support group may begin to change.
“Someone who is newly diagnosed can sit beside a 25-year survivor, and each has something valuable to give the other,” Sheppard said. “The newly diagnosed patient can see there is life beyond treatment, while the long-term survivor has an opportunity to encourage and support someone following behind her.”
Hammack has watched that transformation happen as well. Someone may initially join a group looking for answers and reassurance. With time, she gains experiences and perspective that can help the next person facing the uncertainty of a new diagnosis.
Online communities have expanded opportunities to make those connections, particularly when geography, health or schedules make attending a meeting difficult. In-person groups can offer something different—the chance to see a reassuring expression, laugh together, share a hug or simply sit beside someone during a difficult moment. Those interactions can also grow into friendships that extend beyond cancer.
For those facing breast cancer, the message from Hammack and Sheppard is simple: No one has to navigate the experience alone. Even survivors who no longer feel they need support themselves may have something important to offer others.
“Don’t underestimate the impact that you may have on someone else fighting breast cancer,” Hammack said.
Sometimes connection begins with finding someone who has already walked a similar path. With time and experience, that same patient or survivor may become a source of reassurance and encouragement for someone else.
Marshall Health Network offers two breast cancer support groups in Huntington:
Edwards Comprehensive Cancer Center – Sisters of HOPE Breast Cancer Support Group
First Monday of every other month at 5:30 p.m., beginning Oct. 5
Edwards Comprehensive Cancer Center
1400 Hal Greer Boulevard, Huntington
304-399-2443
St. Mary’s Medical Center – Breast Cancer Support Group
Second Thursday of every month at 5:30 p.m.
St. Mary’s Conference Center
2849 Fifth Avenue, Huntington
304-526-8221
For more information about breast cancer care and support services available through Marshall Health Network, visit edwardscancerinstitute.org/services/support-services.
By Sheanna M. Spence, vice president of marketing and communications for Marshall Health Network.
Previously published in The Herald-Dispatch.