My maternal grandmother did have breast cancer very young but had always felt silenced on the issue and never actually told our family until I was diagnosed at 23. That propelled me to want to take every opportunity to expose the disease of breast cancer on behalf of my grandmother, who always felt silenced about this disease.
We were talking about the power of the pink ribbon, and I'm grateful that has opened up the opportunity to speak about this disease.
Her mother also passed away at 39 years of age from a different form of cancer. The family didn't talk about it. My medical professionals believe that the first breast cancer I had was the same kind my maternal grandmother had, and the second was the same kind my maternal great-grandmother had. The only genetic link that we know of now would be the fact that we probably all have dense breast tissue. I now have two young daughters, and I am relieved to know that there will be tests such as those performed with the automated breast ultrasound machines available for my girls.