Dodging the breast cancer bullet...
Written: May 11 '08 (Updated May 11 '08)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Beautifully written. May save a life.
Cons: May be scary reading for some.
The Bottom Line: Jessica Queller's cancer risk before surgery- 87%. After surgery- 1-3%. Though she's no longer stacked, the odds are stacked in her favor once again.
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| knotheadusc's Full Review: Jessica Queller - Pretty Is What Changes: Tough Ch... |
Once again, People magazine steered me toward my latest reading project, 2008's Pretty Is What Changes: Impossible Choices, the Breast Cancer Gene, and How I Defied My Destiny. Author Jessica Queller has things going for her that a lot of women would kill for. Still in her 30s, she's attractive and in the prime of her life. She's enjoying an exciting, successful, creative career writing "dramedies" for network television, having once been an actress. She's had an op-ed piece published by the New York Times. She has a lot of good friends and enjoys close ties with her family. She's even good friends with celebrities like Calista Flockhart. But into every life, rain must fall, and Jessica Queller has endured her share of rainfall.
After watching her vibrant mother, Stephanie Queller, die at age 52 after a brutal bout with breast and ovarian cancer, Jessica decided to be tested for the BRCA "breast cancer" genetic mutation. A vial of her blood was drawn in a laboratory. Two months later, she still hadn't received the results. When she finally got her positive results, the devastating news was delivered in an equally brutal manner. Because she had tested positive for the "breast cancer gene", Jessica Queller had a 87% chance of developing breast cancer before her 50th birthday and ovarian cancer in her lifetime.
Once she was armed with the devastating results of her genetic crap shoot, Queller started trying to decide what to do with the information. She had two choices. She could either endure cancer screenings every six months for the rest of her life, watching carefully for any signs of cancer development, or she could have her breasts and ovaries removed as a preventative measure. Lots of people had opinions as to which option she should consider. Some people thought she was crazy to consider having her breasts removed when there was still even the slightest chance she wouldn't get sick. Some urged her to have the surgery, having watched friends and loved ones die of cancer.
Having watched her own mother's heartbreaking demise, Queller knew the threat of dying from cancer was terrifyingly real, but she was still single and wanted to have children. As a woman in her mid 30s, she was painfully aware of her biological clock ticking. Having always wanted to be a mother, she wanted to experience every aspect of motherhood-- including bearing and breastfeeding her children-- and she knew that the preventative surgeries would squelch both of those lifelong dreams. And although she knew that her breasts could be reconstructed after the mastectomy, she worried about how the surgery would affect her self image.
Jessica Queller uses vivid, lively language to candidly describe how she ultimately decided to undergo a preventative double mastectomy at age 36. Because she still plans to be a mother, she has put off having her oophorectomy until age 40. But there's much more to Pretty Is What Changes than Queller's story of heading off breast and ovarian cancer. The author also explores her relationships with the women in her family, her grandmother, her mother, and her sister, Danielle, as well as her female friends and their reactions to her decision. She relates how her decision to have the surgeries, coupled with her career as a writer, led her to write an opinion piece about genetic testing for breast cancer for the New York Times, an interview with Cokie Roberts, an appearance on Dateline, and finally, writing her book. Finding out she had the breast cancer gene definitely changed, and probably prolonged, Jessica Queller's life.
My thoughts
Pretty Is What Changes is beautifully written, intensely personal, and potentially lifesaving. Few of us want to consider how and when we will die. In fact, Queller writes that the woman who encouraged her to be tested had not been tested herself because she didn't want to be "burdened" with the results. Jessica Queller repeatedly mentions that her particular defective gene is most prominent in Ashkenazi Jews. Because she was of Ashkenazi Jewish descent and her mother had suffered a horrifying death of breast and ovarian cancer, Queller knew that she had a very good chance of contracting either or both diseases herself. In fact, she knew that even if she survived a bout with breast cancer, she had a very good chance of relapsing. But like most people, she wanted to focus on the positive. Maybe she wouldn't have the genetic defect. Even if she did have it, maybe it wouldn't affect her for another twenty years. Then she started meeting women who did get breast cancer when they were still in the prime of their lives.
Queller writes about what it's like to interview doctors and decide who should perform her surgeries. She explains what it's like to decide what kind of breast reconstruction surgery to have and what material her new breasts should be made of. She even injects a little fun into the subject when she describes trying out different breast sizes. Having always had to carry around D sized breasts on her slim frame, Queller seemed happy to scale down to a B cup after her surgery and is finally able to wear tank tops and sundresses without embarrassment. Better yet, though she's no longer "stacked", the odds are now stacked in her favor again. Before she had surgery, Jessica faced an 87% chance of getting cancer. Now that she's had her breasts removed, her odds are 1-3%.
Queller also offers her readers a glimpse into what seems like a very glamorous life. She rubs elbows with entertainers, script and screen writers, and other creative people. And she reminds her readers that some of the so-called "intelligentsia" are insensitive clods. Because she spoke out about her dilemma, Queller got plenty of unsolicited advice from all kinds of people, whether they knew her personally or not. Queller also ran into her share of doctors who were jerks and dated a few men who didn't know how to handle her potential health crisis. I was impressed by how witty and graceful Queller was in dealing with such people. She strikes me as someone I would enjoy knowing.
I devoured this book in about two days because I couldn't put it down. I found it a pleasure to read, despite the potentially grim subject matter. Queller has a very warm, engaging writing style that makes her come across like an old friend. I would recommend Pretty Is What Changes to anyone who wants to know more about the breast cancer gene. In fact, I think this book is worthwhile reading for any woman who is concerned about the prospect of cancer.
Jessica Queller's Web site: www.jessicaqueller.com
Recommended:
Yes
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knotheadusc
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