I am an optimist and hope is my oxygen.
But four years ago, hope was hard to come by.
My #CervicalCancer diagnosis and our son’s early arrival knocked the wind out of me and our family.
First came the shock. Then came the shame.
I knew women personally who’d had Cervical Health interventions and treatment, but none spoke about it publicly.
I searched through my professional network and found whispers.
I looked for representation in media and turned up silence.
So, to get through, I, too, kept quiet.
I focused on my care, rightly placing my trust in the world-class care team at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital & Weill Cornell Medicine, Dr. Onyinye Balogun, MD MS, Dr. Eloise Chapman-Davis & Dr. Andrea M Dobrenis MD, to carry me through. Because of them, I came through.
At home, long before I could grasp the concept of Post-Traumatic Growth, Matt McDavid LCSW 🌻 planted seeds: the hope I searched for, might, one day, be something I offered other women who unjustly go through the same. And that I would look back on these uncertain moments with pride.
So, when the NYP & Havas teams asked our family to tell our story under their Emmy-award winning #StayAmazing brand campaign, we said yes. (Thank you, Devika Mathrani, Bernice Tsai & Luke Raffo!)
We said yes to telling our story of hope and of health, of pride and perseverance, of wisdom and of warning.
To using the power of media to normalize Cervical Cancer.
To strip away the shame.
To make it easier to speak up and access lifesaving care.
To spark change.
Four years later, I am bursting with hope. Because the change is underway and Cervical Cancer elimination is within reach. It's our collective responsibility to make it happen.
This #CervicalCancerAwarenessMonth, watch this powerful :30 story and take 3 next steps:
1) Get screened for Cervical Cancer: call your OB/GYN or primary care physician and ask to get screened, which includes HPV AND Pap testing
2) Get vaccinated against HPV, the virus that causes Cervical Cancer: call your pediatrician to schedule HPV vaccination for your children, both girls AND boys; the vaccine is most effective when administered between ages 9-12 but still offers lifelong benefits for older children & adults up to age 45
3) Share this message to your network to create change in your community
#HealthcareonLinkedIn #BigIdeas2024 #womenshealth #healthequity #changemakers
Tagging media friends & heavy-hitters to help this message soar:
Katie Couric, Haley Deming, Beth Kutscher, Kristen Johanson, Michael Chatfield, Carly Sousa, Jahanara Ali, Fernando Gómez-Baquero Ph.D. Stephen Paez, Jonah Burrell, BA, BSN, RN, Melanie Nemoy, Alyssa Buetikofer, Alissa Plungis, Craig Atkinson, Mike Solomon, Amanda Plotkin, Christina Kapadia, Andrew Strickman, Seth Matlins, Jonathan Halvorson, MBA, Hannah D., Alison Mueller, Jonathan Vigliaturo, Jon Stemmle, Neil Hoyne, Kristen Leone, Bonin Bough, Jake Curtis, Michelle (Simms) Bandler
Eve McDavid was 35 weeks pregnant when her OB/GYN, #NYPWeillCornell’s Dr. Andrea Dobrenis, discovered a mass on her cervix that turned out to be #CervicalCancer. Dr. Dobrenis teamed up with gynecologic oncologist Dr. Eloise Chapman-Davis and Dr. Onyinye Balogun, a radiation oncologist at #NYPBrooklyn, to treat Eve's growing tumor just two weeks after an emergency C-section to deliver her son, Arthur.
Today, Eve is in remission and thanks her care team for being in her corner every step of the way. Learn more about her journey: https://nyphosp.co/3tEHpl7
Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Weill Cornell Medicine
Senior Community Planning and Development Representative at U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
1moThank you for all you do Dr Witt!