|
History
breastANGELS has been borne completely out of love - the love from and for my sister Liz Stone and my love of helping people, simple as that.
In 2003, Liz was advised of a diagnosis of breast cancer. At the time we were unaware of a significant family history. 2008 saw Liz leave this earthly realm and I underwent bilateral prophylactic mastectomy (BPM) with reconstruction via free flap - in simple terms I had my breasts removed and reconstructed via tummy tuck.
I was fortunate - I was able to make the decision to have the surgery without having to consider any monetary issues. However, even with top private health insurance, the surgery still left me over
AUD $6,000 out of pocket. That would present a huge issue for a lot of women.
But it’s not just my surgery that is expensive, the same applies for a woman wanting to reconstruct her breast(s) after having had breast cancer.
I do not believe that reconstruction of a woman’s breast should be dependent upon whether or not she has access to money to pay for it. This is just too personal and too important - hence the creation of breastANGELS. We provide funding to enable women to have breast reconstructive surgery.
At breastANGELS, we do not advise you on what decision is right for you - no one has that right. We can give you information so that you can make a decision with knowing all the ins and outs. Also, if you have made the decision and money is an issue - that’s where we come in. We completely respect that reconstructive surgery is not a path down which some women wish to travel. We also know there are situations where reconstruction is not an option due to other treatment.
We have a lot of resources on the site - please utilise them all. You will also find some resources that are not cancer related, but come from a personal development perspective. I am passionate about helping people to live the lives of their dreams and assisting them in that pursuit. While living with cancer, or the high risk of developing cancer is probably not on anyone’s dream list, your life does not need to be solely about that.
I hope that you will find the information and resources useful.
Sharon Tregoning
Founder
About Our Name & Logo
The name and direction of this organisation has had a couple of incarnations, before finally becoming breastANGELS.
Before she passed, Liz & I had some thoughts on the direction and type of assistance that the organisation would provide, but that has evolved.
As for the name - my best friend Robyn Ambrose and I were up too late one night tossing around ideas for names. Some were just too cheeky, while others were already taken. Then she came up with breastANGELS. Robyn is also a gifted artist who designed the basis of our Angel Logo.
So dear friend - Thank You, Thank You, Thank You.
For me, the name also works as I believe that Liz is an Angel and helping to create this organisation from the other side. Liz also believed that “A little bit of glitter can fix anything!” Well, clearly it can’t, but it can make it better
and brighter.
|
