Statistics and Stories
Images on this page by Pajewski Studios
If I stare at this image on the computer screen, my eyes start to play a trick on me. There seems to be an awful lot of pink. Go ahead and count, if you wish, to see how many of the characters are actually pink. Similarly, with breast cancer awareness campaigns, there can seem to be an awful lot of pink.
Let’s look at the commonly heard statistics for the United States. On average:
• 12% of women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime
• One out of 400 women carries a BRCA mutation
• 70% of women with a BRCA mutation will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime
But what does that look like?
The image above represents a room full of 1000 women. Let’s have them move around a bit. We’re going to put all those directly affected by breast cancer in the center for a great big group hug - careful there now, don’t squeeze too tightly!
First, let’s have all the gals with a BRCA mutation stand right in the center - represented by a “B” instead of an “x.” And let’s surround them with all the gals who will be diagnosed with breast cancer sometime in their lifetime. We’re going to have them wear pink.Then surround that group with those wearing black, who will not be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime.
What do you see?
While one eighth of the room is wearing pink, seven eighths are not. And look! One of our gals with a BRCA mutation isn’t wearing pink! Even with the mutation, she won’t be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime.
Where are you on the diagram? What is your story, with its joys and sorrows? Many cultures have some form of the proverb “Shared joy is a double joy; shared sorrow is half a sorrow.” With whom do you need to share your story?