Last October, shortly after I was diagnosed, I searched "breast cancer" on my DVR. The list was surprisingly not short: a couple of Lifetime movies and a rerun of Christina Applegate's appearance on Oprah. Among the movies and talk shows sat a gem. A documentary on Discovery Health called "The Breast Cancer Diaries." The film features Ann Murray Paige - a 38-year-old mother of two and former TV news anchor - boldly documenting her battle with breast cancer. She enlisted her sister-in-law to record some very intimate moments such as: Paige memorializing her breasts in plaster cast before her bilateral mastectomy, her post-op stay after surgery, and her husband's reaction to her bald head.
My eyes burned with tears watching Paige with her two young children - a son, who was four at the time, and a one-year-old daughter. She says at one point during the film that she was having a hard time with turning over her responsibilities of being a mother to someone else. I soon would endure the same struggle.
I sobbed in a heap of pillows on the couch after it was over. "The Breast Cancer Diaries" had finally given me what I had been searching for that day on my DVR - a genuine narrative of what to expect in the months ahead. Revisiting the film now, I like to think that Ann Murray Paige had given me the perfect sketch of breast cancer from diagnosis to recovery - except I was the lead.
I contacted Ann Murray Paige - yes, healthy and cancer free five years later - to see if there were any scheduled airings planned for "The Breast Cancer Diaries." The film is currently showing in Sweden, Israel, and South America. Unfortunately, no U.S. airings are scheduled but Ms. Paige said she would be "honored" if we contacted Discovery Health and requested a rebroadcast of the film.
I urge you all to contact Discovery Health and please check out "The Breast Cancer Diaries." [note: please select "other" from the drop down menu when asked to select a program/show on the Discovery Health website]