Nancy Jill's Cancer Alphabet: F

Today’s metastatic breast cancer awareness post starts with the letter F. FOOD becomes a big deal when you have cancer. When I was initially diagnosed I was sure that something I had been eating had caused me to develop breast cancer. Was it turkey bacon? Cooking spray? The organic half and half I put in my coffee? My organic coffee? Then I began to hear about ways I should change my diet. I should do keto. I should be vegan. I should go plant-based whole-foods. I should have berries and mushrooms every day. I should filter my water, avoid dairy, avoid fat, eat fish oil, fast for 18 hours a day, make sure I eat a good breakfast. Take cannabis. Avoid THC. Everywhere I looked there was advice about what to ingest. In particular, when women progress to stage IV, the stigma increases. Let me be perfectly clear. No one causes her breast cancer. Outside of certain genetic mutations WE DON’T KNOW WHAT CAUSES BREAST CANCER. Vegan women who run marathons get breast cancer. Yoginis gets breast cancer. Sedentary women get breast cancer. Women who eat fast food get breast cancer. There are behaviors and choices that increase risk, but increased risk is not the same as causation. Think about that. When a person with breast cancer hears that they should have eaten differently or should change what they eat, this is a form of victim blaming. Food is not to blame. Food choices are not to blame. Cancer patients must not be blamed for their disease. When I asked my surgeon why I got breast cancer he said the only thing that is true: “Because you have breasts.” #metavivor #mbc #pinktober #thisisnotpink