'Knowledge is power:' Shining a light on women's health, cancer risks

Knowledge is power, especially when it comes to women's health.

That was the message Saturday during "Her Health 4 All Seasons" put on by Sentara. It's aimed at teaching women of all ages and backgrounds about breast and gynecological health.

Several women turned out at Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital to hear from cancer survivors who shared their stories of hope.

One survivor, Emily Walker, was diagnosed with invasive ductal carcinoma on Christmas Eve nine years ago.

She was just 24 years old. It all started when she was getting out of the shower.

"I had brushed by my side and realized that I had a lump on the side of my chest," she said.

So she met with her primary care doctor and underwent a mammogram and ultrasound.

It was actually her coworkers who administered the tests—Walker had been working for Sentara.

"Of course, you know, in your 20s, you're trying to find your identity and make something of yourself and find who you are," she said. "And I didn't realize that a piece of that would be breast cancer survivor."

Now at 33 years old, Walker told News 3's Jay Greene she was just one year left of pill-form treatment.

"It's been a roller coaster, a lot of complications," she said. "There's been a lot of setbacks, two steps forward, one step back. But God has held my hand the whole way through, and really been right there by my side, and I'm standing here today because of that."

She talked about hope and action through lifesaving mammograms.

"I mean, if time goes on and you leave things like that unchecked, it could be detrimental," she said. "When I found my breast cancer, it was late stage three, so it was extremely aggressive, and so I think getting that checked out right when you feel something's wrong is so important."

According to the National Cancer Institute, breast, lung and colorectal cancers are most common among women.

The American Cancer Society recommends the following for women at average risk for breast cancer:

• Women ages 40 to 44 should have the choice to start yearly breast cancer screening with a mammogram (x-ray of the breast) if they wish to do so.
• Women ages 45 to 54 should get a mammogram every year.
• Women 55 and older can switch to a mammogram every 2 years, or can continue yearly screening.

The presentation also included several roundtables and opportunities to talk with experts about cancer and prevention.
Shaye Arluck, a registered dietitian, spoke about the importance of gut health and the proper diet to reduce the risks of cancer.

"Unfortunately, cancer rates are still going up, especially our hormonal cancer rates, and it has been directly linked to our obesity epidemic, but also processed food," Arluck said. "If we can increase that good bacteria, as opposed to the bad bacteria that the processed foods cause, we can decrease all types of disease."

Arluck, who is also a breast cancer survivor, said plant-forward diets are key.

"It doesn't mean you can't eat your meats, but we want to focus on the plants, to whole grains. We have a little bit of dairy, a little bit of meats, but, focus on the fish, olive oils, avocado oils, really avoiding the seed oils," Arluck said. "But also fermented foods are so important. These are things like kombucha, yogurt, kimchi."

For Walker, faith and hope are key.

"I think that people need to know that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, that there's hope, that there is another side of this, that this diagnosis isn't a Death Note anymore. It is there's survivorship beyond that diagnosis," Walker said.