A Profile in Courage
Posted on April 25th, 2013 in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
The word “brave” is highly over-used. For example, many politicians call other politicians “brave” when voting for something that might cost them their job in a few years. I’d give you “principled” for that, but not brave. Pat Tillman giving up a career in professional football to fight in Afghanistan—now, that’s brave.
So is this article written by my old friend, Michelle Cottle, about her diagnosis with breast cancer and her choice to have a double mastectomy. It’s not just the decision that’s brave—it’s her incredibly positive attitude about the choice and her decision to write so honestly about it.
Through it all, medical professionals kept reassuring me that I was a prime candidate for a breast-conserving lumpectomy. And every time they delivered this bit of comfort, I thought: “That’s wonderful. Tell it to someone else.” Because, whatever the usual protocol, the one sliver of a silver lining that I could discern in this massive cloud of shit was the opportunity to finally put the girls out of my misery: screw a lumpectomy. This situation called for the full Monty.
Michelle is a really talented journalist and a f’ing strong woman. I tip my cap to her.
One Response
4/25/2013 1:30 pm
I am not understanding you.
While the literature on this sort of thing can be variable, one source I consult has the mortality rate for women diagnosed with stage 0 breast cancer (assessed over 5 years) at 7%. The median age at which breast cancer is diagnosed is 61 years. A randomly selected woman 61 years of age has a 5.5% chance of dying over a period of five years.
This woman insisted on a double mastectomy for stage 0 cancer in one breast. That is … an unusual course of treatment. She did so because her breast tissue has anomalous qualities which had caused her anxiety for the last dozen years. Her decision may be defensible for one reason or another. It is not brave.
People who face grave illness (not what this woman suffers) with a great deal of equanimity might be regarded as brave, but you are not going to have a reliable sense of that unless you deal with them face to face.
(I believe Roger Ebert wrote a column disposing of the idea that he had been brave in the course of his cancer treatments. Mr. Ebert was dealt with rather severely by circumstance).