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2008 Honorary Survivors
 Dee Cartwright
El Paso County Honorary Survivor
In December of 1993, I was diagnosed with breast cancer after finding a lump in my left breast. I was working in Naples Italy, for the 6 th Fleet, as a Budget Analyst and so received a radical mastectomy and radiation treatment in Italy. The Naval doctors sent me to Boston’s Women’s hospital in February 1994, where I received chemotherapy. I was joined by my husband Dan and children Daniel, Michael and Rebekah three months later in Ayer, Massachusetts. After Dan assisted with the closure of Fort Devens, in Massachusetts, he was assigned to Fort Carson 10 th Special Forces. We all moved to Fountain, Colorado, in 1995.
Since moving to Fountain I have become a volunteer in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure® and have attended races in Denver and Colorado Springs. I will celebrate my 14th year of being cancer free in December of this year. Because I lost my mother, older sister, and two aunts to breast cancer and my daughter Rebekah is a high-risk candidate for breast cancer, I am determined to get the word out to as many young women as possible. I feel education is the key to survival, and that is one of the reasons I became the secretary for the Colorado Springs Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure® Executive Committee and a volunteer for the Education Committee.
In 1975, I married Daniel Cartwright and began working for the US government as a civilian. In addition to my three birth children, I opened my home to six other children with no assistance from the state. I am also an Exchange Student Parent to three young people from Brazil who are attending Colorado College in Colorado Springs. This makes my third year being part of the Exchange Student Program for Colorado College. I have one birth grandson (Gabriel) and two grandchildren from the six children to whom I gave a home.
I have always been a Christian woman with a love for children, but also saw the need for encouraging civil and women’s rights. Not only did I work to gain equal rights for women in the military, but I was also part of the nonviolent Civil Rights movement of the 1960’s. I put actions to my belief that people should receive equal pay when performing the same job regardless of race, creed, or sex.
I believe in change for the better and being a participant in making change and not just talking. That is why I will continue to work with the Colorado Springs Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure.
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 Amy Whitcomb
Pueblo County Honorary Survivor
I am honored to be the 2008 Honorary Susan G. Komen Survivor from Pueblo County. I was 30 when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. It was a shock, as well as a life-changing challenge, which I have overcome with the support of Joe Even, my companion of 14 yrs.
My challenge began in August of 2002 when I found a lump in my right breast. When they suggested a biopsy, I thought why not? It’s only a cyst, but to my surprise it was a cancerous tumor. Afraid of what lay ahead, I decided that I would have to start my fight with a positive attitude and the support of several friends and family. The stress and tension a serious illness puts on family and friends are unimaginable. However, it is they who get you through the hard times.
I worked during treatment except for treatment days and the few days afterward. I also volunteered as Treasurer for the Professional Wild Horse Racers, Inc, and tried to keep up with the traveling to help deal with the stress of having cancer. Everyone who goes through chemo is warned of the side effect of hair loss, but nothing can prepare you for the shock of baldness, as all women value their hair in a way no one would understand. However, my boyfriend Joe and one of our friends went bald with me, which was a great support. After 3 to 4 months of chemotherapy, being sick in bed not able to do much for myself, it was time to start radiation treatments. It was during radiation that my grandfather (a great supporter) passed away. It was another emotional drain on me. I finished treatment, was told I had to continue tamoxifen for 5 years, and thought I was home free.
Two months after my treatment had ended, the employment that I had also ended. The loss of my employment and the medical bills forced me to sell my house, which was yet another emotional drain. I thought when will it end! In 2004 I came across the support group called Bosom Buddies, and the Pueblo Survivor and Friends Team where I met many neat ladies who took me under their wing and taught me that I was not alone and that there were other women experiencing the same things. It was then that I learned about Komen, what a strong impact they have on people’s lives and how they are there to help. I attended my first Race for the Cure® in 2004; what an inspiration it was to be around so many others fighting the same challenge. It made me feel as though I was on top of the world.
I now have been in remission for 5 years, overcoming all the struggles and obstacles. I am also on my way to the big island of Hawaii in December for a week to celebrate the success, because I feel I deserve it. Looking back, I am proud to say I survived. Family and friends are the most powerful medication; without their support I would not be where I am today. You can survive the cancer, but the financial burden is a lot to deal with as it never seems to go away. You always have to make the best of a bad situation no matter what. Keep a positive attitude and things seem to work out. So I am here to say to anyone with a challenge that I feel there is hope as long as you keep positive and always remember that everything happens for a reason; you just never know why.
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 Shelley Kurka
Teller County Honorary Survivor
In April of 2005, at 51, I felt wonderful: our children were in college, I had my husband of 30 years all to myself, and my job was great. Life was fantastic! I was reminded by the card on the showerhead to do my usual breast self-exam. I felt a large lump located where previous years of mammograms and ultrasound had shown water cysts. As I expected, my physician confirmed it felt like the same water cyst, advising an ultrasound and preparing me to have it aspirated due to its size. And so the timeline begins.
June 2005: Off I go to Penrad Imaging, where the findings are the same as my primary care physician had thought. I think nothing of this, as 99.9% of the time this process turns out to be nothing. The pathology report reads: “The atypia could be degenerative but is suspicious for carcinoma.” My response is “OK, I want this out.”
July 2005: With the pathology report in hand, I visit the Breast Specialist Surgeon whose recommendation is to wait 6 months because the water cyst has drained and the exact location cannot be found. The compromise is to wait a month until the cyst is filled with fluid again and another ultrasound can identify the area.
August 2005: After an ultrasound finds the location, I’m scheduled for outpatient surgery for removal of the right breast lesion.
August 29, 2005: Pathology report: INVASIVE LOBULAR CARCINOMA, LOBULAR CARCINOMA IN SITU, AND DUCTAL CARCINOMA IN SITU RIGHT BREAST. My surgeon is just as surprised as I am. All I hear in my head is CANCER. My options: lumpectomy with lymph node evaluation followed with radiation and hormone therapy or mastectomy with lymph node evaluation followed by chemotherapy if needed and hormone therapy. This was supposed to be 99.9% nothing--not 100% cancer.
September 2005: My surgeon schedules an MRI. The results: Two other cancer areas are located in the right breast with possible cancer spreading to the pectoral muscle. In the left breast, two benign areas and one area that CANNOT be identified. OK! Now, I want both breasts removed. My surgeon encourages us to go on our pre-planned 30th Anniversary Cruise. We arrive home to find that the Memorial Cancer Consulting Group has recommended surgery to evaluate lymph node involvement and to insert a port for chemotherapy. Two days after our cruise, surgery is done. I’m relieved my lymph nodes test negative. My decision is to have both breasts removed after chemotherapy. I know this is best for me. I will re-think reconstruction later.
January 2006: A double mastectomy is performed. Pathology reports clear margins. Follow up hormone therapy for 5 years.
This cancer journey has been a life-awakening experience. I became an advocate about my own health. I asked questions, looking for options and answers from everyone: professionals, survivors, caregivers and the Internet. Support came from everyone, everywhere. Many shared personal information, feelings of being alone, and lack of knowledge/education during their cancer experience.
Several months after my surgery, I felt I needed to give back what so many had offered to me. With the help of Britta Newcomer at Memorial, I created a Cancer Support and Educational Group in Teller County.
I am looking forward to supporting and participating in the 2008 Komen Race for the Cure®.
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2007-2008 Colorado Springs Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure
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