A survivor's story

Being diagnosed with breast cancer turns the world upside down.
“You don’t know which end is up,” said Julie Allen, who was diagnosed on Sept. 27, 2010. Allen was working as the hotel director for the Craddock Terry Hotel and Event Center when she got the diagnosis.
As a racecar driver, she had been spreading breast cancer awareness for years using the fanciful pink ribbon on the hood of her Austin Healey Sprite to remind the men in her field about the disease.
“When I was diagnosed it was extremely surreal,” said Allen, who was treated in Georgia and North Carolina and is celebrating the end of her treatment at this year’s Corsets for Courage event later this month at the Craddock-Terry Hotel.
Her final surgery took place just a few weeks ago, on Sept. 30.
Support from family and friends helped her find her way; so did an oncology breast navigator, a registered nurse specifically trained to help her navigate treatment into recovery.
“They are a wealth of information,” said Allen, whose navigator helped her determine which questions to ask and translate medical terminology into something she could understand. She even took notes to help Allen remember what was discussed.
At the Alan B. Pearson Regional Cancer Center in Lynchburg, oncology breast navigators meet with patients within three days of a breast cancer diagnosis. Navigators provide patients with written materials and can point to resources within the community. Allen said she relied on her navigator as well as the Komen Foundation, the American Cancer Society and breast cancer books.
Although there is a point at which too much information can be detrimental, said Allen, learning everything about the disease also can be empowering.
By learning as much as she could, Allen was able to provide input into the decisions affecting her care and gain a small sense of control. When she learned that she definitely would lose her hair she took control by shaving her own designs on her head, deciding when that hair would come out and not letting cancer dictate the loss.
“Be involved in your process because it is about you,” she said.
And reach out to friends, she said. She used social media and email to keep her family and friends up-to-date and in return she was able to make it through the rough patches.
When she needed to create a Memory Tree, something she could focus on during 33 days of radiation treatments, friends sent her ornaments that immediately elicited a memory of them and their time together. Allen memorized the ornaments, tied them to the memories and at the same time made her support team understand how important they were to her recovery.
“Ask for help. Don’t be afraid to do that,” Allen said. “You’ll be amazed by the number of people who are out there who are willing to help.”
Want to go?
Corsets for Courage, 6-9 p.m. Oct. 29, Craddock Terry Hotel and Event Center, 1312 Commerce St. Lynchburg. The fundraiser for breast cancer awareness pairs epicurean delights by Chef Roger Murphy of Shoemakers American Grille with Lynchburg’s first public showing of a private collection of ceramic commemorative breastplates by artist Richard Schneider.
Craddock Terry Hotel, Shoemakers American Grille and Waterstone will donate up to 10 percent of all hotel room and restaurant sales on Oct. 29 to the Corsets for Courage event.
All proceeds benefit the Awareness Garden Foundation and the Oncology Breast Navigation Program, Alan B. Pearson Cancer Center.
Tickets, $100 per person, can be purchased at the Craddock Terry Hotel.
For more information call (434) 455-1500.