ana milner

When I got the diagnosis of the Big C  (cancer in both boobs, hormone positive, stage 2B, grade 3 - just coz I am an overachiever) at age 37, my world crumbled – mostly there was a whole lot of WTAF!!! I am not old enough for this (and I’m too busy). So much happens so quickly and decisions have to be made.  In my case, I was losing both boobs and had 24 hours to decide whether I was going to be flat chested or what kind of reconstruction I wanted… 13 hours of surgery later and seven days or so of a hospital bed, it was home to heal and wait for pathology results… Then because my life was never gonna be easy, chemo and radiation followed.  It’s hard to put into words just how overwhelming it all felt.   All you have is questions… am I going to die, how is the mortgage going to be paid, will I have to sell my business I’ve spent my career building, how do I tell my family… whose going to keep the dogs fit, if I cant…. oh and I had our National dog agility competition just days after my initial diagnosis… that thing I had been training all year for… yeah that… (I told my closest friends, swore them to secrecy and we went to nationals… my dogs ran the best they ever have).  The NZ Breast Cancer Foundation was an incredible support during that time. I received a pack from the Foundation (and Breast Cancer Aotearoa Coalition) with a step by step information book, diary for keeping medical appointments and a journal.  That pack was my lifeline, from how to tell your family to what all the big science words mean to pages for writing down everything the doctors said and all my questions, it was (and still is) my bible.  The Foundation’s Facebook support group became a safe space where I could connect with others who truly understood what I was going through. Their website was also a go-to—especially in those middle-of-the-night moments when your mind is racing and you’re lying awake wondering what’s next and whether you’ll survive, and man…. There was A LOT of those nights.  Breast cancer came as a shock, even to me, with a BRCA 2 genetic defect and a family history… you think you’re prepared; but even with everything I thought I knew… well to steal from Game of Thrones “You know nothing Jon Snow”.  Luckily for me, the Foundation has been there, done it all and at the end of the phone / email / internet they have the answers.  The Foundation has also been a great resource for my friends trying to support me - when you’re battling to stay alive it gets bloody hard to keep explaining medical stuff that even you dont really understand - but the Foundation website has it all - so easy to point them to that.   

The Foundation also connected me with a physio who had specialist training in cancer recovery, and even helped cover the cost of some of those sessions, which is still making a real difference in how I recover. The team at the Foundation work hard to make sure you never feel alone and give you hope that maybe you will actually beat this and you will come out the other side stronger than ever.  

 

Beyond the personal support, the Foundation does so much incredible work across the country. They fund research, including Te Rēhita Mate Ūtaetae—the Breast Cancer Foundation National Register—and other vital studies aimed at improving survivorship. They’re big on education and awareness in communities, helping ensure more breast cancers are detected early so lives can be saved. Plus, they advocate for better access to screening, diagnosis, and treatment. If we can save even one person from living through what me and my favourite Aunty have had to go through, then heck, every dollar donated will be worth it.  

Kind regards,

Kylie Munro-Cross