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By Neil Bowdler
Health Reporter
Earlier this month, tennis legend Martina Navratilova told the world she had
breast cancer. Today, she is in the boxing ring.
Gloved up and feet bare, she climbs through the ropes into the ring with the
confidence of a pro - and is soon happily throwing punches at a freelance
journalist.
The location is the Fight for Peace Academy, an east London project in which
the young are encouraged to channel their anger and frustrations into boxing
and other contact sports. The visit is part of her work for the Laureus
sporting foundation.
We as women are so used to taking care of everybody else, but don't take care
of ourselves.
Martina Navratilova
But it comes as the nine-times Wimbledon women's singles champion has been
facing a battle of her own. She has already called it her own "personal 9/11" -
and she is still yet to undergo radiotherapy.
The diagnosis came with a telephone call from her doctor. She was expecting all
to be fine - everything had indicated it would be.
Instead, she was told she had a ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) - a breast
cancer that starts inside the milk ducts. The good news was that it was
non-invasive and that a lumpectomy, which she has now undergone, followed by
six weeks of radiotherapy, should suffice.
"Right now I'm technically cancer-free and the radiation is just to help make
sure it doesn't come back so I should be OK," she explains in an interview
following her short bout in the ring.
She says she will be biking herself to the radiotherapy sessions in May, and
she has absolutely no plan of taking it easy. Ice hockey, triathlon bike rides
and tennis - she is doing it all - and all will help her recovery, she says.
And just for good measure, she plans to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in December for
the Laureus foundation.
"You should try to hopefully go on with your life and do what you love to do
and I've always wanted to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, so why not now?"
Not in control
But there is also a recognition from Navratilova that cancer is one thing you
cannot control, much as the athlete in her would like to.
BREAST CANCER FACTS
diagnosed in 2007
5%
year Source: Cancer Research UK
"Obviously, I'm totally not in control. I'm trying to do my part as far as
being healthy and eating healthy and all that. I've done that all my life but I
still got cancer."
There is also a determination to speak out and to urge other women not to make
the mistake she did of going for four years without a mammogram, a lapse of
judgement which could have proven immensely costly.
"We as women are so used to taking care of everybody else, but don't take care
of ourselves," she says.
"If there's something going on, you should find out as soon as possible. Don't
forget you need to take care of yourself."
High-profile names can help raise awareness of a disease or condition, and
bring it under the spotlight. This video series talks to those in the public
eye about their personal reasons for speaking out.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/health/8630495.stm
Published: 2010/04/20 01:53:16 GMT