In an emotional edition of Sara Sidner’s CNN morning show on Monday, the anchor made her cancer diagnosis public. The video of her moving speech has now been viewed millions of times on social media.
“Take a second and think of the names of eight women you know and love,” Sidner begins her speech. “Statistically, one of these women will get breast cancer or already has it. I am that one in eight in my circle of friends.”
Sidner speaks visibly emotionally, but calmly and confidently. She has never been sick, she doesn’t smoke, rarely drinks, and breast cancer doesn’t run in her family: “And yet here I am with stage three breast cancer. It’s hard to say that.”
She is now in the second month of chemotherapy. In the near future, chemotherapy, radiation and a double mastectomy, i.e. the removal of both breasts, would be planned.
Breast cancer is classified in stages from 0 to IV, depending on the size of the tumor and the presence of metastases. Stage three cancer is not a death sentence, says Sidner. Nevertheless, it is also addressed to all women: “To all my sisters, black and white and brown, please, for heaven’s sake, go for a mammogram every year. Do your self-examination.”
Sidner concludes with a positive thought: “I am learning that no matter what we go through in life, I am still madly in love with this life. And just being alive feels completely different to me now. I’m happier because I no longer stress over stupid little things that used to annoy me.”
She wants to go into the fight against cancer with a very supportive personal environment: “Now every single day that I take another breath I can celebrate that I’m still here with you. I’m here with my co-hosts , my colleagues, my family, and I can love and cry and laugh and hope and that, my dear friends, is enough”.
For 2023, the American Cancer Society expected around 300,000 new breast cancer diagnoses and around 44,000 deaths due to breast cancer. After skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common cancer diagnosis in women. Black women’s risk of death is significantly higher than other demographics.
Sources: Spiegel, T-Online, CNN, Twitter
