GRANITE FALLS – Lots of children get “Mom” tattoos. There aren’t many girls that get “Mom” tattooed on their breast.
But the day Rebecca “Becky” Meeks underwent a mastectomy, her oldest daughter did exactly that.
It’s not the only tattoo Meeks, 46, has in her honor.
To celebrate her fifth anniversary as a breast cancer survivor, her husband, Danny Meeks, added one more tattoo to the gallery on his arms: a pink ribbon, for breast cancer awareness, wrapped around a rose.
Becky Meeks, who along with her husband owns and runs the old Granite Falls Hardware store, said keeping a sense of humor has helped her fight the disease.
She lost her breast and her hair, and gained weight.
“(I’m) still the same woman, just more of me,” she said, laughing.
Despite a continuing regimen of medications and regular visits to a cancer specialist, Meeks said surviving five years feels like being reborn.
She used to worry that every headache, cold or pain was a sign the cancer was back. Now, she said she can relax and enjoy time with her husband, family and friends.
“It’s kind of behind me,” she said.
Experts cautiously agree.
“The five-year mark is a generally accepted milestone we use for a variety of different cancers,” said Dr. Elie Saikaly, a medical oncologist at Providence Everett Medical Center. “The chances are much less at that point that they’ll have a recurrence of that disease.”
Saikaly was careful to say it doesn’t mean that the cancer won’t come back. But it is a very hopeful sign, he said.
The American Cancer Society estimates there will be 4,000 new cases of breast cancer diagnosed in Washington state this year and about 360 women will die.
Nationwide, about 215,000 new breast cancer cases are predicted and about 41,000 people likely will die.
According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer deaths have declined by an average of about 2 percent a year due to earlier detection and increased awareness.
“You sit back and wonder, ‘Why did I get cancer, why me?’” Meeks said.
The only reason she can think off is to help spread the word about the importance of early detection.
“I’m a talker,” she said. “Maybe I’m here to talk to people.”
Meeks said she discovered a lump in her breast that a mammogram hadn’t detected a few months earlier.
“You know your body better than anyone else,” she said.
That’s why she tells everyone she meets about her experience and encourages women to conduct self-exams.
“I really kind of push people,” she said.
She’s pushing herself, too.
Aug. 25-27, Meeks and two friends will join about 2,500 others in the Susan G. Komen Foundation’s Breast Cancer 3-Day fundraising walk-a-thon.
They’ll walk about 20 miles a day over three days, each raising at least $2,200 for research and making new friends.
“You’re instantly best friends with everybody there,” she said.
Meeks has raised about $945 towards her goal.
Mary Medlang, a friend of Meeks’ who’s training to join her on the walk, said she’s proud to support her friend and the cause.
“I’m doing it for women, not necessarily just Becky,” she said. “I’m so hopeful that they’re going to find a cure so I don’t get it … so my granddaughters don’t get it.”
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