I Am Not My Breast Cancer: Women Talk Openly About Love and Sex, Hair Loss and Weight Gain, Mothers and Daughters, and Being a Woman with Breast Cancer

By Ruth Peltason

I Am Not My Breast Cancer is a collection of moving and very frank stories from more than 800 women across the United States as well as from continents as far away as Australia and Africa. In sharing their stories these women give valuable insights into their fears, advice, and experiences, as well as some of their deepest and most intimate concerns.

One of the rare beauties of this book is its ability to provide the reader with an opportunity to feel in the company of other women dealing with breast cancer. Perhaps because author Peltason is a two-time breast cancer survivor, she realized just how important it was for these shared voices to be authentic. I Am Not My Breast Cancer is filled with the stories of ordinary women learning how to deal with a diagnosis that often takes life from ordinary to out of control in a heartbeat.

These women range in age from their early twenties to their late seventies, which helps to put a recognizable face on what breast cancer looks like today. No important topic is taboo, so everything from lovemaking and intimacy to hair loss and juggling the realities of day-to-day life are covered. Many women are not only a patient, but a mother, wife, and coworker. Each of these significant roles is often altered during treatment and rehabilitation. Their discussions about dealing with their own mortality are filled with grace and optimism, as well as a staunch determination not to be defined by this disease.

The book is set up chronologically through the stages of diagnosis, treatment, recovery, and self-discovery, providing the reader with a realistic perspective. In her introduction, Ms. Peltason writes, "My greatest wish for this book is that it offer comfort to any woman living with breast cancer and to those who care about her. If this book is kept on the bedside table, then I hope its need is brief and its impact lasting. I Am Not My Breast Cancer speaks of courage, heroism in deeds small and large, and incredible faith and fortitude."