{"id":2450670,"date":"2019-11-01T23:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-11-02T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/?p=315399"},"modified":"2019-11-01T23:00:00","modified_gmt":"2019-11-02T06:00:00","slug":"fighters-and-survivors-breast-cancer-survivors-activists-in-vail-talk-disease-during-awareness-month","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/fighters-and-survivors-breast-cancer-survivors-activists-in-vail-talk-disease-during-awareness-month\/","title":{"rendered":"Fighters and survivors: Breast cancer survivors, activists in Vail talk disease during awareness month"},"content":{"rendered":"
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EAGLE COUNTY \u2014 As you may or may not be aware, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.<\/p>\n

Notwithstanding the preponderance of pink ribbons, the national observance may have gone unremarked by the average person. But the reality of breast cancer is felt every day of the year. According to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, one in eight American women will develop breast cancer during her lifetime. Other than skin cancers, it is the most common form of the disease among American women.<\/p>\n

There are other basic breast cancer facts most everyone knows \u2014 early detection vastly improves survival rates, and monthly self-exams are recommended, as are yearly mamograms after age 40.<\/p>\n

But in the spirit of awareness, some local women who have battled the disease personally or who have been active in the fight against breast cancer shared their thoughts about what people should know about breast cancer.<\/p>\n

Holli Snyder<\/p>\n

Survivor<\/p>\n

\u201cBreast cancer is definitely not a death sentence.\u201d<\/p>\n

On March 17, Holli Snyder will mark the 10th anniversary of her diagnosis. She noted that learning you have breast cancer is a frightening experience. But when that news comes, Snyder said, local women need to know there are amazing resources available in this valley to treat the disease.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are so fortunate to have the facilities like the Shaw Cancer Center and the Sonnenalp Breast Center we have here,\u201d Snyder said.<\/p>\n

After living with cancer for nearly 10 years, Snyder wants people to know her life is good.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have many, many more positive days than negative ones,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Vikki Hobbs<\/p>\n

Founder of Crawlin\u2019 to a Cure<\/p>\n

\u201cA cancer diagnosis happens to the whole family, not just the one being treated.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since 2011, Vikki and Stewart Hobbs of Gypsum have been front-line warriors in the breast cancer battle. Over the past nine years, their Crawlin\u2019 to a Cure rock crawling competitions have raised more than $300,000 for local families impacted by the disease through scholarships, cash grants and more.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think (after a breast cancer diagnosis) that kids suffer in silence because they don\u2019t want to be a burden,\u201d Vikki Hobbs said. \u201cI think that kids spend a lot of time in fear.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hobbs\u2019 inspiration was close to home. In 2007, her close friend \u2014 36-year-old Tiffany Myers \u2014 was diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer. Myers passed away in 2015 after her breast cancer metastasized to AML leukemia.<\/p>\n

\u201cTiffany was a mother to two amazing boys, the wife of a supporting husband. She worked full time at the Eagle County School District. She was a friend of many and loved by all that knew her,\u201d notes the Crawlin\u2019 to a Cure website. \u201cWe will carry on her fight and honor her with the Tiffany Myers Memorial Keepin\u2019 Em Real Scholarship Fund and continue helping families that we have seen firsthand fight to survive this disease. Tiffany\u2019s story will forever be the heart of this nonprofit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pat Hamilton<\/p>\n

Survivor<\/p>\n

\u201cI think everyone\u2019s first reaction, when diagnosed with breast cancer, is \u2018What, you can\u2019t mean me?\u201d<\/p>\n

Pat Hamilton \u2014 the popular singer, songwriter and guitarist who performs regularly in the Vail Valley \u2014 said it was a hard truth to learn that, most often, a cancer diagnosis is a luck-of-the-draw scenario.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou wonder why it is you and if there is something you did wrong that caused you to have it,\u201d she said. \u201cWhen I found out I had breast cancer, I felt like a deer caught in headlights.\u201d<\/p>\n

But at her most vulnerable point, Hamilton said, the Shaw Cancer Center picked her up.<\/p>\n

\u201cEach time I went over to the Shaw for treatment, each time I went to a Fit for Survival class and the gym, I felt these people working with me had me covered,\u201d Hamilton said. \u201cI felt like I was wrapped in a blanket of extraordinary care and compassion. And I felt that I would be a survivor.\u201d<\/p>\n

Connie Melzer<\/p>\n

Currently undergoing breast cancer treatment<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know your own body.\u201d<\/p>\n

Last February, Connie Melzer underwent her routine mammogram, and the result was negative. But in March she noticed a lump. In April, her breast cancer was diagnosed. She has undergone a double mastectomy and will finish up her chemotherapy treatments in December.<\/p>\n

In the wake of her breast cancer diagnosis, Melzer said her doctors went back and rechecked the February mammogram. Even knowing what they knew about her cancer, they couldn\u2019t detect it in her mammogram film.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had a really aggressive form of cancer,\u201d she said. \u201cWho knows what would have happened if I had waited? It was a significant lump, though, and it was painful, so I don\u2019t think I would have.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou are your own best advocate,\u201d Melzer said. \u201cBe proactive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sarah Giovagnoli<\/p>\n

Exercise physiologist for the Fit for Survival Program at Shaw Cancer Center<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are so many resources now to help with survivorship.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sarah Giovagnoli works on the front line of the breast cancer battle and she can personally attest to the disease\u2019s reach.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt affects women of all ages. We have women in their 30s and women in their 70s,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Regardless of age or physical condition, Giovagnoli said the Shaw Cancer Center offers comprehensive care \u2014 including wellness services such as massage and acupuncture and fitness programs ranging from yoga to tai chi. Giovagnoli said all of these options are vital for survivorship.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a lot more we know how to treat women and help with their survival odds,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Alease Lemon<\/p>\n

Survivor<\/p>\n

\u201cI wish people were aware that mammograms don\u2019t show all types of breast cancer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just as with Melzer, Alease Lemon had a clear mammogram just months before her breast cancer was detected. Those test results, combined with the fact there was no history of breast cancer in her family, left Lemon shocked when her doctor found a lump.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really recommend that the people should do regular self-exams,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Lemon also has one other piece of advice for patients.<\/p>\n

\u201cTake help when it is offered. You may think you are OK and you may be trying to go on like normal, but it catches up with you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lemon has had time to consider the impact of breast cancer on her life. Her diagnosis came 10 years ago.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t think I would ever get to this day, mentally. When you are in the throes of it, you are just living day to day and you never think you will get beyond it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

But as time passes, Lemon could embrace the notion that she is a breast cancer survivor.<\/p>\n

\u201cCancer isn\u2019t the C-word like it was for our parents,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

via:: The Aspen Times<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

EAGLE COUNTY \u2014 As you may or may not be aware, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Notwithstanding the preponderance of pink ribbons, the national observance may have gone unremarked by the average person. But the reality of breast cancer is felt every day of the year. According to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, one […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2450670","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-local-news"],"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-08-19 10:07:05","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSPN The Valley's Quality Rock","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2450670","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2450670"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2450670\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2450670"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2450670"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2450670"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}