 Back
 It started as a present from Scrooge but evolved into a Christmas carol of peace, love and support.
Like most young women with no family history of breast cancer, Melissa Burns of Guilford, 32, thought her breast lump was a consequence of her pregnancy – 19 weeks at the time. But a biopsy proved otherwise. Two days before Christmas 2005, Melissa was diagnosed with stage II infiltrating ductal carcinoma.
“My husband, Matt, and I were devastated with the diagnosis. Of course, there were a lot of uncertainties with the baby and needless to say, our Christmas was quite overshadowed by this news and trips to various doctors,” she said. Melissa also had her daughter, 20-month-old Riley, to think about at home.
Melissa’s doctors recommended an immediate mastectomy and chemotherapy and told Melissa and Matt that the treatment wouldn’t harm the baby. “We would never have put our unborn baby in danger. As it was explained to us, the chemo being used for me includes drugs combined in such a way that they create a large enough molecule that it cannot penetrate the placenta. We were surprised by this, as we hadn’t heard of these advances in cancer medicine. We met lots of people who were also unaware of these options.”
So, Melissa took the medical team’s advice and began her treatment journey. She had her surgery in January, four weeks of treatment in February, and then she took a four-week break. She shaved her head early in the process, to avoid the trauma of everyone having to watch her hair fall out gradually. She also attended a Y-Me support group near her home. She enthusiastically embraced everything medically and emotionally available to her.
Melissa delivered her beautiful, healthy baby girl, Kaylie, April 10, as planned, six weeks early.
“My little girl is my miracle and a blessing. Without Kaylie, I probably wouldn’t have been able to detect that I had breast cancer. The pregnancy and hormones caused the tumor to grow much faster. I was able to see the tumor and feel it in the shower.”
After Kaylie’s birth, Melissa resumed treatment with Taxol and set out to lend her name to an intensive fundraising effort benefiting Komen Connecticut and other breast cancer survivors. In a short six months, more than $50,000 was raised on Melissa’s behalf through a Komen CT Race for the Cure Team, custom jewelry sales and a stunning Pretty in Pink banquet and auction.
Dollars for a Cure
Melissa’s Racers, a team of runners and walkers in the 2006 Komen CT Race for the Cure in Hartford, June 3, raised more than $25,000 in Melissa’s honor. Much of the team’s success was due to the work of Melissa’s sister-in-law and Melissa’s dad. “My dad, a partner at CB Richard Ellis-N.E. Partners, LP, of Hartford, challenged his co-workers to donate to the cause. They were generous beyond my wildest dreams. I am so grateful,” she said. Melissa’s Racers became the highest fundraising team in the 13-year history of the Komen CT Race.
Some of the Race pledge money and more came from the sale of a “Melissa Bracelet,” designed by Donna Kasper of Guilford. This attractive pink, glass-beaded bracelet with a dangling heart has grown into an expanded line of glass bead and fresh water pearl Melissa jewelry available through two shoreline boutiques run by her friends, Guilford residents Beth Chapman and Kasper. Contact Donna, at her Jolie Boutique of Madison and Beth, at her The White Dress by the shore of Clinton.
A separate banquet and silent auction, called Pretty in Pink, was held at Café Allegre, June 14, in Madison. That effort also brought in more than $20,000. The program included guest speakers Sonia Baghdady of WTNH TV 8; RuthAnn Lobo, author, cancer survivor, and mom of alumna University of Connecticut basketball star Rebecca Lobo; and Dr. Liane Philpotts, Yale professor of diagnostic radiology. Melissa received a plaque at the event from Komen CT President Pauline Kezer in honor of her work.
Lessons Learned
“What I’ve learned is that you must count on the people around you because without them, it would be very lonely. She told Guilford Courier reporter Pam Johnson, “If I had kept it private, I would not have made the relationships I have now. It would have been much harder to go through alone.”
Pam wrote in an April feature story: “Also helping Melissa to come through her illness were her husband, friends, family and even total strangers. Through the Susan G. Komen website, Melissa's mom found out about LotsaHelpingHands.com, where she was able to set up a support page for Melissa.” (www.komenct.org and www.komen.org)
“The doctors and nurses who attended to my care at Yale New Haven Hospital Breast Center, are the most wonderful people I’ve ever met,” she added.
For this young breast cancer survivor who majored in psychological counseling in college, her life will now include talking with others who have suffered and are newly facing the disease.
Melissa says it this way, “Today, I’m getting on with my life. But I recognize that now, I belong to a sisterhood…a most amazing sisterhood.”
Thank you to Barbara Puffer, Puffer Public Relations; Pam Johnson, the Guilford Courier; Sandi Kahn Shelton, the New Haven Register, and NBC TV 30, Partners in a Caring Community, for the information used in this story
Back |
