Catherine Gigante-Brown

You realize pretty soon that everything other than cancer — i.e. missing a train, being late to your dentist appointment — is no biggie compared to the suck factor of chemo.

Alas, I am the lone female in a house full of men. Only two men, but they take up a lot of space.

I go for checkups when I’m supposed to: every three months to the oncologist and every six months to the breast surgeon. I go to SHARE support group meetings to bolster myself. I try to get enough sleep, despite the occasional night spent wide-eyed with dread.

erotic. intimate. unapologetic.

"I was afraid this thing was going to do me in. But I took a deep breath and decided very early on that I would face cancer on my own terms."

Instead of categorizing people as different colors, I proposed we might begin to think of each other as Earthtones—because our skin colors are based on hues from the earth. Just as the planet is made up of a myriad of shades, it’s still one cohesive entity. We can be thought of as one entity also.

My husband and I agreed: raising a child with an independent spirit who made decisions for himself was a good thing.

I’m boycotting you until you start recognizing breast cancer survivors like me by carrying mastectomy bras.

Why, when I'm cool with being a salt-and-pepper chick, does it so clearly unnerve others?

I realized my father was from a generation that never said those three little words. He was saying he loved me without them. But I didn't realize it then.