Most women believe that if they get their annual mammogram, they are being proactive with their breast health, but it doesn’t stop there. Karen E. Jackson, breast cancer survivor and founder and CEO of Sisters Network shares the keys to fighting against breast cancer and why knowledge is power. Check out her inspiring story…
BDO: How did you discover that you had breast cancer and what was your initial thought process after your diagnosis?
Karen: I became aware of my family history with breast cancer. I’ve always been a proactive person about my personal health so I started getting my mammogram since I was 35. At that time in the 80s, that was unheard of because they were telling women not to get mammograms at an early age, but I wanted to be proactive and I wanted to find out. I was very blessed that I was persistent in getting my mammogram, my intuition and listening to my body. I felt as though something was wrong with my breast. It was nothing to see but it was a feeling I had in my breast.
I was persistent in getting the doctor to tell me what other kind of tests were available because I didn’t know what else to ask for. They recommended the ultrasound and that was how I was able to find out that I had a cancer in my right breast for many years and that it was 3.5 centimeters. It wasn’t detected by the mammogram, so I’m one of those women who would have fallen through the cracks because I was only getting a mammogram. Actually it’s not enough for any woman. A mammogram only gives you 85% of what’s going on in your body. Don’t you want 100%?
BDO: What was your thought process after you found the cancer?
Karen: My mindset was that I was told I only had five years to live after being diagnosed. I was of the mindset that I was happy that I was persistent in getting the test, but I was concerned that five years was such a short time. I proactively changed my diet, I did exercise more—not that I never did, I just did it more. But more importantly, I felt as though that even if one doctor tells you one diagnosis, that’s not 100% and I had faith that I was not going to die from breast cancer. So I continued to have healthy habits, I never smoked and I didn’t think drink at any extent. I just tried to improve on the health things that I did know. I learned that there is no definitive thing that we can do that’s being recommended. You just have to have a healthy body to survive your cancer. It doesn’t stop you from getting it. But you can do better with your diagnosis if your body is in general good health.
BDO: How did you stay encouraged when you were fighting against breast cancer?
Karen: Well first and foremost, prayer is very powerful. Along with prayer, I feel as though your knowledge of the disease helps to strengthen you to fight because it gives you that control and that direction. Without knowledge you don’t have any sense of where you’re going with this disease. The sisterhood of surrounding yourself with positive people and that’s what I felt Sisters Network would do for myself and for others.
BDO: What role did your support system or your sisterhood play in your healing process?
Karen: When I was diagnosed, I wanted to join a national organization because I felt as though there was more power in numbers and information sharing across the country would be a powerful tool. I wanted to be a part of a movement of survivors because that’s what I needed. I feel as though Sisters Network is the tool that’s used within our community to make women knowledgeable about where they’re going and give them the support but I was fortunate enough to have my husband, my daughter and friend to help me initially. I needed much more. I needed that sisterhood.
BDO: Do you see more organizations promoting sisterhood now?
Karen: I see local groups still forming, but there is no other national organization. In the future I’d like to see the individual groups that are forming in the different cities to come together collectively under a Sisters Network banner or under another banner because there is power in numbers. We’ll never be able to fight a good fight for our community without having the power of numbers. So I see collaboration between the different groups in the different communities coming together.
BDO: What are some of the success stories of Sisters Network?
Karen: We are able to impact young people which is something I’ve always wanted to do. We just started our Teens for Pink, and we’re starting to impact the lives of young girls between the ages of 12 and 16 with a breast health message that breast cancer is not a death sentence. We’re replacing fear with hope and information. They’re teen ambassadors who go back to their families and talk to their mothers, their grandmothers, their sisters and explain what breast health is about, what mammograms can do and they share this information. It gives them the power of bringing something impactful for their own families and it also gives them an opportunity to let their mothers, aunts and grandmothers to know that Sisters Network provides free mammograms and ultrasounds so it saves lives.
BDO: Are you cancer-free today?
Karen: I am cancer-free and I’m also knowledgeable that as you age you’re more susceptible to cancer, so I’m just as vigilant as I’ve always been when I was diagnosed with breast cancer in my left breast. I was able to find it at its earliest stage because I was intuitive and did my testing. I found it before it got to be a problem.
BDO: What’s the biggest lesson you learned about yourself?
Karen: I feel as though I’m an example to those who started with nothing can turn out to be something very powerful for yourself and for your community. We have to choose to continue the fight against breast cancer until there’s a cure so the fight is not over until cancer is over.