Ruth Lines, right, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2021, is in remission after undergoing a double mastectomy to rid her body of the cancer. She is pictured with her grandson Jake Nestor, and is sharing her story during Breast Cancer Awareness month to bring attention to the importance of early detection.
Ruth Lines, second from right, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2021, is in remission after undergoing a double mastectomy to rid her body of the cancer. She is pictured with her family, including her daughter Sheryl Roadcap, second from left; Roadcap’s boyfriend Anthony Levy, far left; son Donald Roadcap, far right; and grandson Luke Roadcap-Schoewe in the front. She is sharing her story during Breast Cancer Awareness month to bring attention to the importance of early detection.
By Sheryl Roadcap
TROY — When you hear about breast cancer, you never think it will happen to you or someone in your family. —But then the unexpected does happen, and it takes you by surprise when you hear that diagnosis.
According to the National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF), it is estimated that in 2024, more than 360,000 people will be diagnosed with breast cancer. As a way to raise awareness, October is deemed as Breast Cancer Awareness Month and one woman, my mother Ruth Lines, wants to share her story as a way to help others.
“This is just my story,” Lines said, with humility. She is a survivor, three years out since her breast cancer diagnosis, and wants to spread hope. “I hope people don’t question why I was able to recover when they could still be battling the disease, or think I think I am trying to get attention. I just want to help people. And I want to spread awareness about how important it is to get checked (with a mammogram).”
“I kept putting (getting a mammogram) off. Typically, I had them annually,” she recalled, explaining that it had been a little more than 18 months since her last exam. “But then I thought, I better just go and get it done. And they called me the next day.”
Lines had numerous tests — around eight biopsies — to get a breast cancer diagnosis after the doctors noticed something abnormal.
“It took three months of biopsies, starting in June 2021. It was then in July 2021 that I received a definite diagnosis of breast cancer. On Aug. 26, 2021, I had a double mastectomy performed, with the thought in mind that I wouldn’t have to battle it again,” she said, noting that having worked in health care her entire career, she has known others for whom the cancer had returned after being in remission following a lumpectomy.
A lumpectomy is a surgery to remove cancer from the breast, whereas, a mastectomy is surgery to remove a breast.
She continued by recalling when she informed her children, my brother and me, of her diagnosis.
“After my announcement, you both began to cry out of fear of losing me since since you had already lost your dad. My reassurance was, ‘Straighten up. Do you think I would let you off that easy? I am not done picking at and aggravating you kids!’”
The morning of surgery, she remembered sitting in a chair waiting to be picked up when the words her father once spoke to her when she was previously ill came to her.
“He said, ‘Ruth, I raised you to be strong. You’re going to be OK!’ she said, noting those words brought great comfort.
“When I was being placed under for surgery, I remember speaking to the Lord and getting comfort in the fact that He would wrap me up in His arms and keep me safe,” Lines said. “God has a plan for everyone. We need to remember our faith in that plan and by keeping positive thoughts will help us in these really difficult situations.”
Lines said her great-grandmother died of breast cancer when she was 92. And two-weeks after Lines’ diagnosis, one of her sisters was also diagnosed with breast cancer. Lines feels that maybe hearing about her diagnosis motivated her sister to also go get a mammogram.
“Maybe she would also have more let time go by,” Lines said, “and then her cancer could have been much worse by the time it was caught if I had not brought up being checked out.”
Lines emphasised that having a family history is another reason to be vigilant.
“I didn’t cry one time (after being diagnosed). I had it set in my mind that nothing is going to hold me back. I believed God had His hand on me and it will be fine. I’m glad to be a survivor and to be able to share my story and help instill faith in others (that recovery is possible),” Lines said.
Her message: Please go annually to get a mammogram.
“Don’t put it off. If I had put it off longer, it could have spread and I could have died. I hope this helps and uplifts someone,” she concluded.
“There is hope,” said the NBCF on its website. “Advancements in early detection methods and support continue to increase the chances of survival. When caught in its earliest, localized stages, the five-year relative survival rate of breast cancer is 99%. But early detection for all is only possible through action.”
The mission of the NBCF is to help and inspire hope to those affected by breast cancer through early detection, education, and support services.
Breast cancer information and support is available on NBCF’s website at https://www.nationalbreastcancer.org/
