Reach to Recovery

(I apologize for this post being late, so as a comprise I'll do posts this week!)

When women (or men) are diagnosed with breast cancer there are immediately faced with many questions: "Will I lose my hair?" "Will I have to have a mastectomy?" "How am I going to get through this?" "Where do I got for help and guidance?" or "Who can I talk to?"
Luckily there is a patient services program designed specifically for women and men who are diagnosed with breast cancer and it is called Reach to Recovery.  And in case you didn't know, yes men can be diagnosed with breast cancer.

Reach to Recovery has been provided by the American Cancer Society for over 40 years. The program is designed to help both men and women who are facing a range of breast cancer experiences from just diagnosed to entering remission.  What Reach to Recovery does, is it pairs a current breast cancer patient with a Reach volunteer, who meet a set of criteria, to discuss any questions or concerns the patient has and to help guide them through the journey of cancer treatment.  The Reach volunteers are not every day volunteers, they are breast cancer survivors who have been in remission for at least 1 year and are thoroughly trained to work with the patients. The volunteers come from varying backgrounds of breast cancer experience as well, some have had mastectomies, double mastectomies, had lymphedema, or breast reconstruction.  By carefully pairing patients and volunteers, the patients can receive the best information and support about exactly what they are going through.

For some breast cancer patients, their Reach to Recovery volunteer is the only person in their life who understands exactly what they are going through and can talk to them on a level that they understand.  All of the volunteers are trained on what medical terms mean and how to explain them in more basic terms so the patient doesn't feel overwhelmed or confused.  But aside from all of that the Reach volunteers are there simply as way for the patient to see that there is hope of survival because the Reach volunteer has been there before, they have survived.

I think this program is remarkable and I wish my Grandmother had had the opportunity to speak with a Reach to Recovery volunteer during her battle with breast cancer.  I believe all women and men who are diagnosed with breast cancer, regardless of the stage, need to seek out the Reach to Recovery program because it will give them the hope, support and understanding they need to get through their diagnosis, treatment and recovery.


And as always more information about patient services program, cancer facts & statistics, or cancer information can be found at cancer.org or by calling 1-800-227-2345 at any hour of the day or night. 
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Until We Find a Cure