Tamika

Above the Waist, Below the Waist: Why Breast Cancer Awareness Matters to Cervivors

By Kyle Minnis, Cervivor Communications Assistant

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and you might wonder why a cervical cancer community like Cervivor cares so much. The answer is simple: Our stories don’t fit neatly into one diagnosis, one organ, or one month on the calendar.

Many cervical cancer survivors — a.k.a. Cervivors — have lost mothers, grandmothers, sisters, and friends to breast cancer. Some have faced both cancers themselves. And many of the same barriers that can stand between someone and a Pap or HPV test — including cost, lack of insurance, and distance to care — can also keep them from getting a mammogram.

In 2026, an estimated 321,910 women in the U.S. will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer, while an estimated 13,490 women will be diagnosed with invasive cervical cancer. Behind every one of those numbers is a person, a family, and a community. This month, we’re sharing the stories of Cervivors whose lives have been touched by both cancers, along with resources that can help you or someone you love access screening and care.

Where Our Stories Intersect

For some Cervivors, the connection to breast cancer is another diagnosis. For others, it’s a genetic risk, a family history, or an unexpected moment when cervical cancer care opens the door to breast care. Their stories show just how differently — and deeply — these cancer communities intersect.

Karen’s Story: Breast and Cervical Cancer

Karen North

Cervivor Ambassador and SGM/LGBTQIA+ Lead Karen North, BSN, RN, was 46 when a routine mammogram found her breast cancer. She chose a double mastectomy and didn’t need further treatment. Eighteen months later, she was diagnosed with cervical cancer.

Having faced both, Karen believes cancer communities need to show up for one another. “There are too many people being diagnosed, in treatment, dying, and scared of a recurrence,” she said.

For her, October should focus on what matters most: “prevention, screening, access to treatment and aftercare.”

Karen also wants cancer awareness to include everyone it affects, including people with a cervix who don’t identify as female. “Everyone deserves to feel seen, respected, and included when it comes to cancer awareness, prevention, and care,” she says. “There are too many barriers with cancer and gender shouldn’t be one of them.”

Kadiana’s Story: Survivor to Previvor

Kadiana Vegee

In 2020, Cervivor Ambassador and Caribbean Liaison Kadiana Vegee was in treatment for cervical cancer when her doctor suggested genetic testing because of her family history. She learned she carries a BRCA1 mutation, increasing her breast cancer risk.

“It was a lot to take in because I was already dealing with cervical cancer,” she says, noting her 32 rounds of external radiation, 6 rounds of brachytherapy, and 6 cycles of chemotherapy. “But at the same time, I’m grateful I had that information because it gave me the opportunity to make decisions about my health instead of waiting for something to happen.”

Kadiana ultimately chose a preventive double mastectomy without reconstruction. “I didn’t want to live constantly wondering if breast cancer was going to be the next thing I had to face,” she says. “I chose my health and my peace of mind.”

Today, she is both a cervical cancer survivor and a breast cancer “previvor.” Her advice to others who learn they carry a BRCA mutation is to give themselves time, ask questions, and make the choice that is right for them.

Lillian’s Story: Loss, Survival, and Advocacy

Dr. Lillian Walker Shelton

Mental health therapist Dr. Lillian Walker Shelton, Ed.D., LPC, LCPC, ACS, lost her mother to cervical cancer in 1996, when the disease and its connection to HPV were still widely misunderstood. Lillian recalls a doctor asking whether her mother had been a prostitute — a question so disturbing that her grandmother filed a formal complaint.

Years later, after moving to Washington, D.C., Lillian met Cervivor Founder and Chief Visionary Tamika Felder and trained as a cancer advocate through Tamika & Friends, as the organization was originally named. That training became vital when Lillian was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2020 and again in 2022. Today, she is living with metastatic breast cancer.

Her mother, she says, never felt empowered to advocate for herself. Lillian approaches her own care differently: “I know that my life depends on my advocacy.”

After her cancer spread to her bones, Lillian experienced two broken legs and a hip replacement between 2022 and 2025. She has learned to ask for help and lean on family, friends, and therapy. Her message to other survivors is simple: “You can’t do cancer alone.”

Lauren’s Story: When Screening Connects

Lauren Lastauskas

Cervivor Program Coordinator Lauren Lastauskas is a cervical cancer survivor with a strong connection to breast cancer: Her maternal grandmother died of a recurrence, and Lauren later helped care for a sister-in-law diagnosed with stage 3 HER2-positive breast cancer.

When Lauren was uninsured, she received her cervical cancer follow-up care through Take Charge, Oklahoma’s branch of the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program. At one visit, a provider asked whether she had noticed any breast changes. Lauren mentioned a new nipple discharge. “Through my own cervical cancer experience and many friends and family dealing with breast cancer, I knew I had to speak up!”

The provider referred the then-32-year-old Lauren for a diagnostic mammogram, which came back clear. “I only got that clear result because of my cervical cancer screening and the federally funded breast and cervical program,” she says.

Access wasn’t easy: Lauren drove about an hour and a half for her Pap test and another hour and a half for the mammogram. The experience, she says, “reiterated the importance of advocating for yourself and mentioning any and all problems to a health provider.”

The Program Behind Lauren’s Story: The NBCCEDP

The CDC’s National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP) provides free and low-cost breast and cervical cancer screening and diagnostic services to people with low incomes who are uninsured or underinsured.

Early detection can make a profound difference: Five-year relative survival is more than 99% for localized breast cancer and 91% for localized cervical cancer. That makes access to screening especially important for people who might otherwise go without it, like Lauren.

The program works through state, tribal, and territorial public health departments across the country, so the name and the places you can go will vary by state. Since 1991, it has served more than 6.7 million women and provided more than 16.8 million breast and cervical cancer screening exams. Those exams have found more than 82,000 invasive breast cancers and 5,400 invasive cervical cancers, plus more than 259,000 cervical precancers caught before they could become cancer.

If cost or insurance is standing between you and a mammogram or a Pap/HPV test, visit the CDC’s NBCCEDP page (link above) to find your state or tribal program. 

Lauren spotted a rainbow at the start of her hour-and-a-half drive to her mammogram.
She holds her “all clear” results after her mammogram, provided at low cost through the NBCCEDP.

Partners in the Work: The Promise Fund

Some organizations already see breast and cervical cancer as one fight. The Promise Fund, based in West Palm Beach, FL, works to increase survivorship from both cancers. It was founded in 2018 by former U.S. Ambassador Nancy G. Brinker, who also founded Susan G. Komen after losing her sister to breast cancer.

Promise Fund Navigators provide women with one-on-one guidance from screening through diagnosis, treatment, and completion of care. They help remove barriers by arranging transportation, providing translation, answering insurance questions, and connecting women with mammograms, Pap tests, HPV testing, and other essential services at little or no cost. Through partnerships with health-care providers and community organizations, the Promise Fund serves women across Palm Beach, Broward, and Martin counties.

Ambassador Brinker is also a 2024 Cervivor Champion Award recipient and shared her insights with our community at the 2025 Cervical Cancer Summit Powered by Cervivor, Inc. Watch her talk here — it’s a good one!

Cervivor’s Commitment

Cervivor was built to give a voice to people affected by cervical cancer. That mission has never meant caring about only one part of a person’s health. Our community members are whole people, with whole bodies and whole families, and the cancers that touch them don’t respect boundaries.

As our founder Tamika explains: “At Cervivor, we care about the cancers above the waist just as much as the ones below it. So many of our members have watched breast cancer take someone they love, or have faced it themselves. Breast Cancer Awareness Month is our month too.”

Throughout October, we’ll be sharing stories, resources, and reminders to help our community stay informed and screened.

What You Can Do This Month

Awareness means the most when it turns into action. This October, we’re asking our community to:

  • Schedule your mammogram, and check whether your Pap or HPV test is due too.
  • Speak up about any changes you notice, even if you’re at an appointment for something else.
  • Look up free or low-cost screening through the NBCCEDP if cost is a barrier.
  • Share this post with someone who may be putting off screening.
  • Tell us your story if breast cancer has touched your life.

Informed. Empowered. Alive. That applies to every part of us. 

About the Author

The image is a portrait of a young man with dark skin and short, curly black hair. He is wearing a blue collared shirt and black-framed glasses, and is smiling at the camera. The man has dark skin and short, curly black hair. His hair is cut close to his head, with a slight fade at the sides. His eyebrows are thick and well-groomed. He is wearing a blue collared shirt. The shirt is a medium blue color and appears to be made of a lightweight material. It has a relaxed fit and is buttoned up to the top. He is also wearing black-framed glasses. The frames are rectangular in shape and have a subtle curve at the temples. The lenses are clear and do not appear to have any tint or coating. The man is smiling at the camera. His smile is wide and genuine, showing off his white teeth. His eyes are crinkled at the corners, giving him a friendly and approachable appearance. The background of the image is a plain gray color. The gray is a medium tone, neither too light nor too dark. It provides a neutral backdrop that allows the subject to stand out. Overall, the image presents a friendly and approachable young man who appears to be confident and comfortable in front of the camera

Kyle Minnis is a recent graduate of Strategic Communications at the University of Kansas with a passion for digital media, storytelling, and audience engagement. He has experience in content strategy and media production. Kyle is especially interested in the intersection of media, branding, and digital growth.

Every Voice. Every Journey. — Meet the People Moving Gynecologic Cancer Advocacy Forward

By Cervivor Communications Director Sara Lyle-Ingersoll

A gynecologic cancer diagnosis can change a person’s life in an instant. Hearing the words “you have cancer” is a universally disorienting experience — one that can divide life into a before and an after.

But the impact doesn’t stop with the person diagnosed. It reaches families, friends, caregivers, and communities. Daughters care for their mothers. A loved one’s diagnosis changes how family members think about their own health and the decisions they make about their care. And when someone dies from gynecologic cancer, those left behind carry both the loss and the memory of the person they loved.

Sometimes, those experiences become a catalyst for action. Survivors and loved ones turn what they have lived through into education, peer support, research, policy, community-building, and advocacy — working to make the path better for those who come next.

That same belief in the power of patient voices fueled Cervivor Founder and Chief Visionary Tamika Felder to start the organization 21 years ago after surviving cervical cancer.

“Too many gynecologic cancers still aren’t talked about enough. That’s why every voice and every journey matters,” says Tamika, echoing Cervivor’s Gynecologic Cancer Awareness Month (GCAM) 2026 theme. “When survivors share their stories, they raise awareness, help others recognize the signs, and inspire action that can lead to prevention, earlier diagnoses, and better outcomes.”

Throughout the month, Cervivor has been elevating the voices of people whose lives have been changed by different gynecologic cancers — and who are using those experiences to improve the lives and outcomes of others. Read on to meet seven people moving gynecologic cancer advocacy forward.

Naomi Aziz: Advocating for Young Patients to Be Heard

Endometrial Cancer Research Foundation (ECRF), Patient Advocacy & Engagement Lead

Naomi Aziz was just 27 when she was diagnosed with Stage IVB endometrial cancer in 2018, after experiencing prolonged menstrual bleeding for nearly a year. She was forced to confront the loss of her fertility and the future she had envisioned for herself.

Her age makes her experience particularly striking: The average age at endometrial cancer diagnosis is 60, and the disease is uncommon in people younger than 45, according to the American Cancer Society.

After more than five years of treatment, Naomi found a way to turn grief and uncertainty into action. Today, her advocacy emphasizes symptom awareness, equitable access to specialists and clinical trials, survivorship, and making sure younger patients are part of the conversation.

“There is growing recognition that lived experience is essential, and that patients should not simply be included in these conversations; they should help shape them.”

Adrienne Moore: Filling a Void for Black Women

Endometrial Cancer Action Network for African Americans (ECANA), President

When Adrienne Moore was diagnosed with Stage III endometrial cancer in 2016, she went looking for answers — and couldn’t find them. A respiratory therapist and longtime patient and caregiver educator, she realized she could use both her professional skills and lived experience to help other Black women recognize symptoms, ask questions, and communicate more confidently with their healthcare providers.

That mission is urgent. The American Cancer Society reports that although Black women are less likely than white women to be diagnosed with endometrial cancer, their death rate from the disease is nearly twice as high. 

Adrienne’s advocacy also carries the memory of her late cousin, Cervivor Ambassador Teolita Rickenbacker, a 2017 Cervivor School graduate who lived with Stage IV cervical cancer and advocated on Capitol Hill. Adrienne told Cervivor that participating in this GCAM feature was one way she could honor her cousin.

“Our patient voice creates a powerful ripple effect: As individuals share their experiences, vital information spreads throughout the community.”

Kath Mazzella OAM: Refusing to be Ashamed 

Vulvar Cancer Survivor, Author and International Gynecologic Health Advocate

For Kath Mazzella OAM, an Australian advocate awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (that’s the “OAM” after her name) for her service to women’s health, advocacy began with a cancer people were barely willing to name.

Kath says a lump near her clitoris was dismissed for about 18 months before she was diagnosed with vulvar cancer. After undergoing extensive treatment, she was struck by how little people knew about vulvar health—and by the shame and silence surrounding women’s genital health.

“I simply refuse to be ashamed,” she says.

That conviction has fueled more than 30 years of advocacy for greater awareness, education, early detection, and open conversations about gynecologic health. Kath also established International Gynecological Awareness Day, observed annually on September 10. Her new book, Stitched Up: Turning My Vulval Cancer Diagnosis into a World-Changing Movement, is being released this week, sharing more of her journey from diagnosis to advocacy.

Her hope for future patients is simple but powerful: “knowledge, a voice, and permission to speak openly about their vulvar health without shame.”

Alvina Nadeem: Turning Patient Experience Into Systems Change

Quebec Cancer Coalition, Board Member | Health Data Research Network Canada (HDRN Canada), Public Advisory Council Member

Before ovarian cancer, Alvina Nadeem understood complex systems through her work in engineering, change management, human-centered design, and digital transformation. Then she became the person trying to navigate one.

“I understood the ‘pipes,’ so to speak: how systems are designed, coordinated, implemented, handed off, and changed,” Alvina says. “Cancer made me understand the ‘water.’”

Suddenly, professional concepts became lived experiences. She saw firsthand the gap between healthcare as designed and as experienced — and how often patients and families are left to bridge it.

Today, Alvina advocates for recognizing lived experience as a “form of systems intelligence.” Patients cross boundaries between clinicians, hospitals, researchers, and other parts of healthcare, giving them insight into gaps that institutions may not see.

“Healthcare should not be designed around the most capable version of the patient,” Alvina says. “If a system works only because the patient can research, remember, coordinate, and advocate through its gaps, that is what the engineer in me would call a design problem.”

After all, she says, “We don’t expect water to flow where the pipes don’t connect.”

Runsi Sen: Carrying Her Mother’s Legacy Forward

Ovarcome, Founder

Runsi Sen’s path to advocacy began beside her mother. As she helped her navigate ovarian cancer, Runsi experienced the anxiety, uncertainty, complicated decisions, and isolation that can accompany a diagnosis—and the helplessness of watching someone she loved rapidly succumb to the disease.

After her mother died, Runsi made a promise to carry her legacy forward by supporting other women and families affected by ovarian cancer. That promise became Ovarcome, an organization focused on education, support, research, equity, and access.

Her experience also taught her that advocacy doesn’t belong only to patients and survivors.

“Care partners are instrumental in ensuring quality of care for those in treatment. They are the silent yet unwavering force behind Ovarcoming. They should be given a seat at the table. Always.”

Nefa-Tari Moore: Three Cancer Journeys, One Powerful Voice

International Gynecologic Cancer Society (IGCS), Gynecologic Cancer Advocate

As both a nurse and a three-time uterine and ovarian cancer thriver, Nefa-Tari Moore brings what she calls “authentic authority” to her advocacy — encouraging women to trust their instincts, ask difficult questions, and push back when their concerns are dismissed.

Her advocacy spans education, peer support, health equity, and systemic change, with a particular focus on ensuring Black women are represented in gynecologic cancer care, research, and advocacy. In 2025, the International Gynecologic Cancer Society recognized her work with its Dicey Scroggins Distinguished Advocate Award.

“Ensuring Black women’s voices and experiences are centered in gynecologic cancer care, research, and advocacy isn’t just about equity—it’s essential for saving lives.”

Claudia Pérez-Favela: Putting a Face to the Statistics

Cervivor Ambassador | American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN), ACT Lead

Five years before Claudia Pérez-Favela faced cervical cancer herself, her mother died just 17 days after being diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

That loss shaped how Claudia approached her own diagnosis and treatment. When she needed a radical hysterectomy, she chose to have her ovaries removed, too, because she feared facing the disease that had taken her mother. She later learned that she carries a BRCA2 mutation.

Claudia initially wondered whether her experience was even hers to share. Her perspective changed after attending Cervivor School in 2023. The following year, she received Cervivor’s Rising Star Award in recognition of her growing advocacy within the Hispanic community and the broader movement to end cervical cancer.  

Today, her advocacy continues to grow. She recently penned an Imperial Valley Press op-ed promoting HPV vaccination as cancer prevention, and was selected for Cancer Nation’s 2026 Leadership Academy, where she is continuing to build the skills and connections to turn her lived experience into broader change.

“I have learned that it is very important to put a face to the statistics and that every story matters, including my own.”

Every Story Can Move Us Forward

There is no single path from cancer to advocacy. It can begin with a diagnosis, a delayed diagnosis, caring for someone you love, losing someone you love, or simply recognizing that what happened to you should be different for the person who comes next.

What connects these advocates is their willingness to speak — and to turn lived experience into something larger.

That is at the heart of Cervivor’s GCAM 2026 theme: 

Our Stories. Our Movement.
Every Voice. Every Journey. Every Gynecologic Cancer.

Later this month, Cervivor will put that theme into action at its first-ever Gynecological Cancer Survivors Retreat and Advocacy Training, September 24 to 27 in Scottsdale, Arizona. Powered by Cervivor School, the special retreat expands beyond cervical cancer to welcome survivors of all gynecologic cancers and build community through shared experience, education, and advocacy training.

Cervivor Cares for Caregivers, Too

As Runsi and Claudia’s stories remind us, gynecologic cancer affects more than the person diagnosed. Caregivers and loved ones often navigate their own uncertainty, questions, and emotions while supporting someone through diagnosis, treatment, and survivorship. 

If you’re caring for or supporting someone facing a gynecologic cancer diagnosis or survivorship, you don’t have to navigate that role alone. Cervivor’s private Caregiver Support Community on Facebook offers a space to connect with others who understand the challenges, questions, and emotions that can come with supporting someone you love.

About the Author

SARA LYLE-INGERSOLL is a content and communications expert dedicated to transforming lived experiences into impactful stories. Her award-winning magazine feature about a close friend who died from cervical cancer in their twenties led her to Cervivor, and solidified her commitment to cervical cancer awareness and prevention. Now, as Cervivor’s Communications Director, Sara brings this mission full circle.