NO EXCUSES

 By Katheryn Bain

Working on my latest release Beautiful Imperfection, I thought that, as a woman, I’d know what it felt like if my doctor ever diagnosed me with breast cancer. Then I started my research and realized I didn’t know anything.

There are over two million living survivors of breast cancer in the world today. And with early detection and treatment, your doctor can almost guarantee survival. Yet people still seem to come up with excuses why they don’t get a mammogram.

1. Breast cancer doesn't run in my family. 85% of detection occurs in women whose family has no history of breast cancer.

2. It’s too expensive. Mammograms are now covered by all health insurance. And if you don’t have insurance, in October, most imaging businesses cut their cost in half for Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

3. I’m a man.  Men can get breast cancer also. In fact, one out of one thousand men develop breast cancer in their lifetime.

4. I’m so busy, I don’t have enough time. Approximately forty thousand women die of breast cancer each year. The life expectancy of someone who develops breast cancer but doesn't get treated is 6-8 months. Still don't think you have time?

5. I hate getting squished. It’s uncomfortable. How many of us would live with five minutes of discomfort for a million dollars. Why then is the five minutes of getting a mammogram not worth the price of your life?

6. I’m too young to get breast cancer. While the average age for most people who suffer from breast cancer is 61, approximately 2% of those diagnosed are between the ages of 20 and 34.

You’re encouraged to get a mammogram every year once you hit age 40 where the percentage of those with breast cancer hits 9.6%. However, if cancer runs in your family, you are twice as likely to develop it, so have your doctor check you out sooner. It's worth it to catch it early.

In fact, your life could depend on it.

 Kathryn J. Bain began writing more than twelve years ago. Her fifth book, Beautiful Imperfection, will be available September 29, 2013. She is the former President of Florida Sisters in Crime and is currently the Public Relations Director for Ancient City Romance Authors. To survive and pay bills, she has been a paralegal for over twenty years and works for an attorney who specializes in elder law. She has two daughters and a dog named Gretchen. Her first grandchild, Hope was born in May, 2013. Kathryn grew up in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. In 1981, she moved to Boise, but it apparently wasn't far enough south, because two years later she headed to Jacksonville, Florida and has lived in the sunshine ever since.