When a woman receives a diagnosis of breast cancer, sharing her experience with a breast cancer survivor can be invaluable. Through the American Cancer Society’s Reach to Recovery program, female breast cancer survivors assist newly diagnosed women to cope with their cancer diagnosis and journey. The Society is now offering the program in Salisbury and patients will be referred through Rowan Regional Medical Center.
Reach to Recovery is an American Cancer Society program through which volunteers act as role models to breast cancer patients by sharing their personal experiences and providing them the opportunity to express their own feelings and fears. Breast cancer information can be overwhelming, but volunteers serve as confidants by offering hope and strength to patients to help them overcome the disease and move forward as survivors.
“It can be overwhelming to get a diagnosis of breast cancer,” said LeeAnna Perry, mission delivery manager for the American Cancer Society. “Having someone who has been through it, and is a survivor, can provide support and hope.”
A free training session for potential volunteers is scheduled for Saturday, March 9, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at Rowan Regional Hospital’s Radiation Oncology Office, 229 Mocksville Ave. For more information and to register, contact Perry at leeanna.perry@cancer.org or 704-553-5378.
“We are seeking women who are breast cancer survivors and willing to share their cancer journey. I feel that women who have traveled this road will be able to bring hope to newly diagnosed women,” said Heather St.Aubin-Stout, volunteer coordinator of the new program in Salisbury. “Reach to Recovery is especially wonderful because both the volunteer and the client benefit from sharing their experiences.”