Tomi Zito

Prior to her diagnosis, Tomi (pronounced Tomē) Zito was living the good life in Boca Raton, Florida. She worked as a bartender and had a decorative painting business that was not only thriving, but something she thoroughly enjoyed. Tomi had been troubled for some time with a sharp, burning pain in her breast that would sort of come and go. When she went for her mammogram and ultrasound, she was told that everything was fine. Still feeling something was not right, even after a second opinion where she was told the problem might be an infection and would most likely go away, Tomi persisted.

“I made an appointment with breast surgeon Marla Dudak just to ease my mind. She found a Stage II, almost III tumor that was nearly the size of a quarter and very aggressive. A week later I was fully immersed in making my appointments to have a mastectomy. I was 46 at the time, with no family here in Boca Raton. Luckily, my wonderful boyfriend Steve stayed the course. He even told me I look cute bald!

Zito continues, “In the meantime, my dad had a massive stroke, so my mom was fully engaged in caring for him. I come from a traditional Italian family, so I knew if I confided in my parents it was going to cause way too much stress. My sister did come to be with me, but told them she was coming for a vacation. I had a double mastectomy followed by chemotherapy. Eventually, I explained away my short hair by telling my dad I’d gotten a haircut.

“I was born and raised north of Detroit in Harrison Township. My entire family lives in Michigan. After the fact, I found out that my dad’s sister had a single mastectomy when she was in her 40s. No one talked about it back then, so my having breast cancer came as a complete shock. I had the BRCA testing and it came back positive. I have the BRCA II gene, so I’ve also had a hysterectomy to try to avoid ovarian cancer if at all possible. My mom and dad were also tested and we discovered that this probably originated on my dad’s side of the family.”

As a result of her illness, Tomi was fired from her job, which was a very difficult time for her. “I had worked there off and on for six years. When I was sick they supported me 100%. They sent me money. They even paid for my health insurance. During my first month back they hired a young guy to manage the place and he handed me a shirt and told me to tuck it in. I told him I couldn’t (this was because I was still recovering from my surgeries) – at which point he told me if I didn’t I would be fired. Well, he was true to his word and fired me. I was devastated because that took away my health insurance. I went on COBRA and when that ran out I had to get my own health insurance. I now have to pay $750 a month to obtain coverage.”

Having had full reconstruction at the time of her surgery, Tomi shares a bit of insight about this procedure saying, “I would never in a million years have had fake breasts if I didn’t have to. Sometimes it seems like everyone has them here in Boca – and it isn’t because they’ve had breast cancer! I can’t believe how hot and heavy my implants are. Plus, I have no feeling there, everything is numb. I do, however, have hot flashes, which is something I wish I couldn’t feel!

“Throughout all of this, I was thinking let me turn something negative into something positive. I had been devastated by losing my job. There were days when I simply couldn’t function. Added to that was the fact I couldn’t do my painting any longer because I was unable to get up on the scaffold. I was filled with fear about how I would be able to make a living.”

Tomi personifies the spirit of survivorship, because she chose to find a way to make some very positive changes in her life. “I had 11 procedures in one year where I would have to stay in the hospital. They put you in those ugly gowns with those ugly socks,” say Zito, “You look horrible and feel horrible too! I decided that when I got better I was going to make something pretty. That was the first thing I did when I was able, I found some really beautiful fabric and made hospital gowns that were actually attractive. Then I began making some bracelets out of leather, rather than that rubbery silicone stuff that everyone has been using. I had inspirational messages engraved on the leather.

“In order to reach consumers, I began doing little house parties where I would show and sell my products. I wanted to create a promotional company that would show support – but that provided items you would wear afterwards – not just during treatment. My stuff is subtle so cancer isn’t always hitting you in the face. I even have little silk thread necklaces with a small crystal the color of the cancer cure you are supporting. I wanted to get the word out to younger women to get tested. To let them know a cancer diagnosis is not a death sentence. So I needed products that would appeal to them.”

What evolved in November of 2008 is Tomi’s business venture She Rocks 4 Cancer (http://www.sherocks4cancer.com/). Tomi would love to be able to make a living from this endeavor, but is also happy to be giving back, since a portion of all proceeds go towards breast cancer research and support. If she has customers who would prefer to support another cancer cause, that opportunity is also available.

Tomi’s life is now filled with lots of charity events, cancer walks, and educational programs. “I was at a Glam-a-Thon event in Ft. Lauderdale where the night before the event they had a kick-off party with a bunch of vendor booths set up. There was a girl in the booth next to me who asked me how I found out about my cancer. I told her my story and she mentioned that her aunt, grandma, and mom all died of ovarian cancer. At the end of the evening she came to my booth and told me she wanted me to know I had made a difference and that I might have just saved a life, because she was going to go get tested. Those are the moments I live for. Blessings come from strange places. I would never have been so passionate about finding a cure, or have been as involved in helping other women if I hadn’t experienced breast cancer. I guess my message to women who are just being diagnosed or are going through treatment would be to believe that something positive can come from this.”

All we can say is: Rock on, Tomi!