The East Kootenay Foundation for Health (EKFH) has rolled out the largest public campaign in the organization’s history, A Clear View. Starting in October, EKFH began a two-year $1 million fundraising effort for the purchase of a digital stereotactic mammography machine for the East Kootenay Regional Hospital. As part of the importance of the campaign, the EKFH sought regional breast cancer survivors who have battled the beast and their supporters to be the faces for the campaign.
Sue Selby and her daughter, Stephanie — both from Cranbrook — were two of the first people to step forward. Sue was not surprised to be diagnosed with breast cancer in 2002. Both of her parents, her two brothers and her sister had all battled cancer; Sue’s father died from the disease when he was only 38 years old. So the news was like the dropping of the other shoe, and Sue was matter-of-fact about the diagnosis.
“After 20 years of working in hospice care, I had made my peace with how we all end up in life,” said Sue. “I am also a supporter of other breast cancer survivors and try to be as strong for them as my family and friends are for me.”
Of course, it’s not just the person battling cancer who is affected by the disease. Sue’s husband and children were worried as well, which is when Stephanie, a registered nurse, stepped up to become the go-to person for the family. Stephanie said it wasn’t a decision — it was just a role she took on naturally.
“You go into the mode of being the support person,” she said, “a role that had always been my mother’s.”
Stephanie became the pillar of strength for her mother and for the family, helping them to understand the diagnosis and treatment, and supporting Sue’s decisions about her treatment. The only time Stephanie broke down was following Sue’s mastectomy, when it was determined that all the cancer had been removed and that chemotherapy and radiation would not be necessary.
Sue considers herself lucky to have been treated at home. She had the option of being treated at one of the most prestigious medical centres in the U.S., but said that she wanted to be near her home and her support people.
That option is one of the reasons she and Stephanie support the EKFH’s initiative to purchase the digital mammography machine, which will be instrumental in early detection and treatment of breast cancer.
Because the equipment is not available at the East Kootenay Regional Hospital, Sue and Stephanie had to travel to Calgary recently for a follow-up exam, a trip that Sue said was emotionally and physically draining.
“It can be a huge challenge to travel for a half-hour procedure,” said Stephanie. “That’s why we both believe this machine will make such a huge difference for women here.”
For more information or to become a corporate contributor, please visit www.aclearview.ca or call the East Kootenay Foundation for Health at 250-489-6481 or 1-877-489-6481.
— EAST KOOTENAY FOUNDATION FOR HEALTH