I was diagnosed with breast cancer 14 years ago at the age of 26.  I was a single career gal living in New York City.  My lump was 3.9 cm and the road to recovery seemed very challenging.At the time, my world evolved into being all about me and my disease and hoping I would come out the other end.

When I was first diagnosed, I did all the necessary research, developed a plan of attack and less than a year later had completed my treatments. I battled the disease and thought it was over for a few months after my last chemo treatment. But at every regularly scheduled doctors' follow-up visit, I found that I was paranoid and anxiously worried that the cancer would return.  I thought my battle was over, but those visits made me worry that I might be called back to duty any day now. I did not know what to do with all that nervous, unproductive energy. I began to talk to other advocates and a bunch of women from an organization in New York called SHARE recommended that I get to know the National Breast Cancer Coalition. In December of 1998, I participated in NBCC's Project LEAD and was blown away by the intensive training that I received there.And then, in the spring of 1999, I attended The NBCCF's Annual Advocacy Conference in Washington DC, which was four intense days in the company of really smart advocates from all over the world - four days of intensive training about the complex political process and the complex issues behind breast cancer. The benefit of the knowledge, research, and intense training that NBCC offered, coupled with the fact that now I no longer felt like a paranoid civilian waiting for the next bullet to hit me, made me feel like a member of a very powerful army of advocates who were armed and ready to fight this battle together. I went from feeling like an individual in the middle of a war, not sure where to aim my armory, to part of a hugely formidable force that would work together until the war was won. Until we end breast cancer, we continue to fight with the mightiest sword, knowledge, and after you are trained by the NBCCF, you have that! 

I used the training well. I remember at the end of the conference how intese Tuesday's lobby day was. You moved from meeting to meeting armed with NBCC's legislative priorities and their briefing package, in the company of experienced advocates, who helped you make your points to your legislative representatives.

I met with the legislative aid to Marge Roukema, a Republican representative for my district at the time. I talked to her about our legislative priorities and really made my point by talking to her as a young woman to another young woman. I noticed Congresswoman Roukema's voting record had not been too good in years past. I was pleased to see that she came around after our meeting that day and was very supportive of whatever we asked of her for the rest of her tenure. I continue to work with Scott Garrett with the same success.I think it's important that legislators hear from their constituents. If we present a logical, reasonable request and all the data to back it up, you can usually change the way they think and the way they vote. 

Discussing change with our legislators is an important way to make an impact in this battle for all women. This means of fighting breast cancer is way better than any chemo drug I ever took!