May 10, 2011 – FRISCO, TX – While undergoing a bone scan for an unrelated injury, Jan Greenwood, a wife and mother of four, heard the dreaded words that afflict over two hundred thousand women each year, “You have breast cancer.”
“I remember just the sensation of having the wind sucked out of my lungs, a sucker punch, or something that stops you mid-stride,” says Greenwood about her diagnosis. “And then as you begin to breathe again, there are one million questions that circle your mind.”
In response to hearing countless stories from around the country from women diagnosed with breast cancer, the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc. (NBCF), with the support of top medical experts, doctors, and researchers worldwide, created Beyond The Shock®, an online resource for women who have been diagnosed with the disease (www.BeyondTheShock.com).
“We have found that women are so shocked about their diagnosis that they don’t think to ask questions until they get home from the doctor’s office,” says NBCF Founder & CEO, Janelle Hail. “That’s why we created Beyond The Shock®, because once the shock subsides, women want immediate answers to their questions.”
Hail understands this shock. In 1980, at the age of 34, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a mastectomy. She survived the life-threatening disease as a result of early detection, but admits that little information was available at the time, so her treatment decision was made in the midst of distress.
BeyondTheShock.com utilizes ground-breaking technology and the resources of the global medical community to create an accessible platform for understanding a diagnosis of breast cancer and to help women understand all the treatment options available to them.
Through a series of seven video chapters, BeyondTheShock.com explains breast cancer types and stages, how it grows, how it is diagnosed, and how it is treated. The site also features a social community that allows users to ask questions of other survivors and get answers.
Another feature of the site includes a place to hear and upload stories from survivors in various stages of the disease. Greenwood, a Stage 4 breast cancer survivor, shares her remarkable survival story in one of the featured stories.
“Whatever you’re afraid of, you have to do it in spite of the fear,” says Greenwood. “Eventually, the fear becomes a catalyst for courage.”
In response to the increasing global demand for information about breast cancer, BeyondTheShock.com is currently being translated into multiple languages with the mission to bring hope around the world.
About the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc.:
Recognized as one of the leading breast cancer organizations in the world, NBCF’s mission is to save lives through early detection and to provide mammograms for those in need. NBCF provides Help for Today…Hope ForTomorrow® through its National Mammography Program, Early Detection Plan®, MyNBCF online social community, Beyond The Shock®, and breast cancer research programs. For more information about NBCF, visit www.nbcf.org