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Finding inspiration
Shared cancer experience sparks friendship
By Janice Youngwith
Some people may get by with a little help from their friends.
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| Friends Gloria Suardiaz Alvarez and Susan Corbridge, Naperville, share a common bond and passion. |
But for Susan Corbridge, Ph.D., a Naperville resident and pulmonary/critical care nurse practitioner at the University of Illinois Hospital, a true friend can inspire, offer hope and in many ways, save your life.
That's how Corbridge views Gloria Suardiaz Alvarez, a fitness expert and two-time breast cancer survivor.
"It was just a year ago, after learning of my own breast cancer diagnosis, that I was sitting on the couch wondering where I could find someone who could relate to what I was facing," Corbridge recalls. "It was Mother's Day 2008 - a depressing, cold, wet and rainy Sunday."
According to the American Cancer Society, Corbridge is among the 2.4 million women living in the U.S. who have been diagnosed with and treated for breast cancer. One out of eight American women who live to be 85 years of age will develop breast cancer, a risk that was one out of 14 in 1960.
With her family away for the morning, Corbridge recalls she "was feeling very alone."
Divine intervention
After learning of abnormalities in her mammogram and scheduling surgery for the following week, the nursing professional says it must have been fate or divine intervention which led her to click on the TV and begin watching news coverage of the annual Breast Cancer Network of Strength Walk To Empower on Chicago's lakefront.
"I was shocked to see reporters interviewing Gloria Suardiaz Alvarez, the spin and group exercise instructor from my Warrenville fitness club," she says. "As I was wondering how I was going to handle my own diagnosis, Gloria was inspiring others and sharing her own experience with breast cancer. She was so uplifting. I had no idea she had faced the same diagnosis."
That interview, she says, changed her perspective and her life.
"I saw all those people walking in support of those with breast cancer and was inspired by Gloria's story," she recalls. "I vowed at that moment to stop worrying about myself and use my experience to do something to help others. I had to find Gloria to tell her she had saved my life."
A simple phone call to Lifetime Fitness in Warrenville was all it took to track down Alvarez.
"She was away from the phone, but we later connected and I had a chance to thank her for inspiring me," says Corbridge. The two agreed to touch base after surgery.
Alvarez, who was facing her own second diagnosis with recurring breast cancer, says it was a moment she'll always remember.
"It's those one-on-one moments which can make you cry and truly move you," she admits. "Susan had only known me from the gym. I was overwhelmed to know I could make an impact on someone like her. From that moment on we developed a special connection and soon became very close friends."
Getting moving
Alvarez says she could well relate to Corbridge's despair and depression. She was first diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ (breast cancer) in 2000, just weeks after her mother passed away from the same disease. She worried first about how to tell her son and daughter, both young adults. Then she worried about treatment which included two lumpectomies and a seven-week course of radiation.
As a certified personal trainer and certified group exercise instructor through the American Council on Exercise, Alvarez says it was exercise that got her off the couch and moving even during the fatiguing rounds of radiation.
"Being told you have breast cancer literally knocks your socks off," says Alvarez. "Breast cancer turns your world upside down. But if you can just get up, move, walk and stretch, then mentally and physically you often feel so much better. It may seem counterintuitive, but exercise can actually make you feel less tired."
Alvarez says she was fortunate to bounce back quickly and only stopped exercising when her skin, a natural olive complexion due to her Cuban American ancestry, started to burn during radiation treatment.
"I was back to teaching kickboxing classes very quickly as soon as the burning subsided," she recalls. "And I was more determined than ever to use my experience to make a difference for other women. I began sharing messages with women in my classes about the need for early detection and the importance of mammography screening."
An empty nester, Alvarez also began to actively look for other opportunities to make a difference in the lives of others facing a similar breast cancer diagnosis.
"Because my husband, a McDonald's Corporation executive, and I had just relocated to the area from California, I was feeling isolated and alone," Alvarez says. "I soon learned about Breast Cancer Network of Strength and toured the Chicago offices."
Armed with information
Alvarez says what was to be a one-half hour tour turned into a two hour period of excitement as she toured the building, learned about a special teen educational program, viewed the Sharon Rose Wig and Prosthesis Salon and was both amazed and inspired by breast cancer survivors manning the organization's 24 hour YourShoes support center hotline.
"The YourShoes peer counselors didn't give medical advice, instead they were there for callers, armed with information on a variety of topics such as what to expect during procedures, the pros and cons of treatment options, and what it was like personally to navigate the breast cancer journey." Alvarez notes. "With such support, patients and their families could experience immediate emotional relief and became better equipped to cope with all facets of the breast cancer experience."
Alvarez became a member of the organization's national board of directors in 2004 and developed a keen interest in expanding programs and services to the underserved and underprivileged, eventually helping to establish an affiliate in her native Miami.
She says the proverbial second shoe dropped in 2007, when her breast cancer recurred.
"My choices for treatment were limited because I had had previous radiation therapy," she says. "Like many women, I had a pity party and moved on, eventually opting for a bilateral mastectomy done in stages. This time, I knew immediately who to call and found immense comfort among friends and colleagues at the Network of Strength."
Following eight reconstructive surgeries in 20 months, Alvarez jumped back into teaching her exercise classes, gradually noting increases in energy, strength and her range of motion.
"I started with small stretching movements, some yoga and simple walking," she recalls. "People constantly asked how I did it. I honestly don't know. Perhaps my success stems from a lifetime of fitness. Emotionally I still have my days."
Making a difference & survivorship
While Corbridge's initial phone call sparked a flurry of e-mails and eventual meetings, the two survivors frequently bumped into each other at various fitness classes.
"With Susan's wealth of medical knowledge and her own survivorship, I began to wonder what role she might play as a potential colleague and national board member," Alvarez notes. "Our friendship and shared enthusiasm to make a difference and help others know they are not alone has resulted in a wonderful working relationship as she joined the board this year."
In addition to their passion for serving the underinsured and underserved communities, Alvarez and Corbridge have teamed up to enhance and augment support for survivors having completed treatment and to find ways to break cultural barriers to treatment.
Alvarez says that while coaching, motivating and inspiring others to exercise have always brought her happiness, nothing compares to knowing she has made a difference in the life of her dear friend and other women facing breast cancer.
With more than 10 million U.S. cancer survivors - 14 percent are 20-year survivors - Alvarez says no one should face or survive a breast cancer diagnosis alone.
"There is a great life after breast cancer," Alvarez says. "There is also a great need for support not only during treatment, but after. Look how lucky I am. I've got my life, my family, dear friends and an absolute 'artist' of a plastic surgeon who did my breast reconstruction."
Information and support is available in more than 150 other languages by calling Breast Cancer Network of Strength YourShoes support center staffed by trained breast cancer survivors at (800) 221-2141 and visiting online at www.networkofstrength.org.
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