By Adrienne Query-Fiss , Special to JTNews
Breast cancer statistics are staggering: One in eight women in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer. Worldwide, a woman dies from breast cancer every 69 seconds. To address this issue, Seattle Chapter Hadassah on Sept. 21 will host Breast Cancer Exposed!, a gala event designed to celebrate the strength and tenacity of women who have survived breast cancer, encourage testing for the Breast Cancer Susceptibility Gene (BRCA) gene, fundraise for research, and to promote awareness of the disease in Seattle’s Jewish community.
While this is the first event of its kind for Seattle Hadassah, the motives behind the organization of such an evening are clear, startng with the women being highlighted.
The evening’s honoree is Mary Alhadeff, a survivor of a rare form of breast cancer. Alhadeff was diagnosed at a young age and with three small children at home. She not only survived, but went on to have a fourth healthy child — a rare occurrence among survivors, as many chemotherapy medications can cause early menopause and ovarian damage. The event marks the first time Alhadeff will speak publicly about her experience with breast cancer and the impact it had on her family.
“I wasn’t about to let cancer become my identity,” she said.
Alhadeff encourages women to be their own healthcare advocates.
“As with any health issue, push forward, consult different doctors,” she said. “Questioning is important; earlier detection is better detection.”
The evening’s keynote speaker is Jessica Queller, a writer for the TV shows “Felicity,” “The Gilmore Girls,” “One Tree Hill,” and currently “Gossip Girls.” Queller’s mother survived breast cancer and later died from ovarian cancer; it was at the prompts of some friends that she got tested for the BRCA gene.
The Breast Cancer Susceptibility Gene, or BRCA, has two mutations numbered 1 and 2. The BRCA genes belong to a class called tumor suppressors: They protect normal cell DNA and prevent rogue cell growth. BRCA 1 and 2 were thought to be the most common genetic mutations found in Ashkenazi Jewish women, but new research has found that it occurs in Sephardi populations, too.
Genetic testing can look for proteins produced by these genes and determine whether a woman has inherited the mutation. Hadassah, through Breast Cancer Exposed!, hopes to raise awareness of the presence of this gene and promotes testing for BRCA. Generally, Jewish women who have had a first-degree relative (mother or sister) who has had breast cancer should be tested for the gene. That said, 90 percent of women who are diagnosed with breast cancer do not have a BCRA genetic mutation.
Queller, however, did test positive for the gene, and wrote about the burden of knowledge in a 2005 New York Times op-ed, “Cancer and the Maiden.”
“It’s akin to Eve taking a bite of the apple,” she wrote. “Once you have the knowledge there’s no turning back.”
She then went on to write a bestselling memoir about the decisions she faced in Pretty is What Changes: Impossible Choices, The Breast Cancer Gene, and How I Defied My Destiny.
Because BRCA was discovered through important and costly research, Breast Cancer Exposed! is also a fundraiser for the new Marlene Greenbaum Multidisciplinary Diagnostic Breast Health Center at Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem. Cindy Levy, the event’s co-chair, said she is excited about the new Breast Health Center at Hadassah, and about the financial support this event will bring to it.
“Hadassah is maintaining its place as a leader in oncological research in general, and breast cancer research in particular,” Levy said. “Great strides are being made in the field of BRCA research as well as genetic modification. They are creating cutting-edge technology that is enabling doctors to diagnose and treat patients at a much more efficient pace than in the past. It’s also important to note that the work that’s being done there will benefit us all. What Hadassah is doing in Israel will benefit all of us. We are global partners for education, prevention, and a cure.”
Newman said that Hadassah has a specific monetary goal in mind.
“We’re hoping to walk in the door having already raised $200,000, and we’d like to raise $400,000 by the time the night is over,” she said.