Olivia Newton-John Quotes

For years I heeded the warning: Do monthly breast self-exams. Like most women, I did them on a 'sort of' basis. Every few months I'd sort of do a quick feel, but never as thoroughly as the doctors urged. I didn't want to go looking for trouble. If you look for it, you might find it. Looking for cancer is unsettling. Thank God I looked.

I'm not about my breasts; I'm just about good health, OK. I'm not afraid of doing what I need to do to stay here. I really don't understand women who are in denial, who don't want to go for a mammogram. I think it's stupidity. Sorry. I have no patience for that.

And I would urge all women to have that regular mammogram.

Because the majority of my readers are women, I feel that one public service I can provide to them is to spread the message of regular mammograms and early detection within the strip.

When Mrs. Bush was First Lady, she went all over the Mideast talking about breast cancer awareness and the need for early screening. She did this in places where the cultures prohibit such discussion or even detection efforts.

I am passionate about talking to women about their breast health.

I think a lot of people just aren't aware how young you can be and be diagnosed with breast cancer.

Every woman needs to know the facts. And the fact is, when it comes to breast cancer, every woman is at risk.

If I were a 40-year-old woman, 40-to-50, I'd want to be getting my mammograms. They catch cancers, and cancer is very curable if you catch it early.

I wasn't prepared to get a mammogram until I was 40 years old, like I'd been told. I never in my wildest dreams expected anything to be wrong.

In June 1992, I discovered a lump in my breast. A subsequent mammogram, ultrasound and a needle biopsy proved negative. But my instinct said it still didn't feel right, so I had a lumpectomy. I then got the news that it was cancer.

I started realizing I could be an example for women to not just be aware of breast cancer but to act on it, to make an appointment, to give themselves an exam.

All women should understand that a mammogram is nothing to be afraid of. It's not an enemy but a friend. Early detection is the key to the cure.

As a woman, you need to take control of your health. There's no harm in going in and getting checked out. Eventually, you have to ask yourself: 'Do I want to live at 100% or 80%?'

Breast cancer deaths in America have been declining for more than a decade. Much of that success is due to early detection and better treatments for women. I strongly encourage women to get a mammogram.

My mom, she's a breast cancer survivor and because of that I had started getting mammograms once a year, starting at age 30.

On a personal note: I have contracted an outstanding case of breast cancer, from which I intend to recover. I don't need get-well cards, but I would like the beloved women readers to do something for me: Go. Get. The. Damn. Mammogram. Done.

I would encourage all women to get mammograms when their doctors tell them to.

I've been really diligent about going and getting screenings and mammograms, and so when I got the scare I said, 'Thank God that I went!' You can't blow it off. It's very important.

Being a breast cancer survivor, as I like to call myself - it will be twenty years next year - I did it to make it possible for women to do regular self breast examinations. It's really important - and, it makes common sense: you know your body better than the doctor does who only sees you once a year, you know?

You have to pay attention to who you are. You need to know your family history as well as you can. It is important for young women to have preventive care. If you catch any women's cancers early it's the difference between life and death. Do you really want to leave your kids without a mother?

I want to encourage everyone to be proactive with their health and get checked out.

There can be life after breast cancer. The prerequisite is early detection.

Breast cancer alone kills some 458,000 people each year, according to the World Health Organization, mainly in low- and middle-income countries. It has got to be a priority to ensure that more women can access gene testing and lifesaving preventive treatment, whatever their means and background, wherever they live.

I had been afraid of breast cancer, as I suspect most women are, from the time I hit adolescence. At that age, when our emerging sexuality is our central preoccupation, the idea of disfigurement of a breast is particularly horrifying.