MY BREAST CANCER ADVENTURE

Scattergood’s memoir chronicles her battle with breast cancer.

In 2022, the author had a biopsy on her breast; the procedure revealed invasive lobular breast cancer. The diagnosis sent Scattergood on an arduous journey that would come to include two mastectomies, chemotherapy, radiation treatment, and a host of side effects. The author encountered a lot of self-help material regarding breast cancer, but nothing that “simply tells what happens when someone gets diagnosed.” The book details MRIs, discusses the potential benefits of lymphatic drainage massage, and provides practical advice for those on their own cancer journeys (such as being sure to see a dentist before beginning chemotherapy). In the second portion of the book, Scattergood interviews others who have gone through experiences with breast cancer. Such survivors include Michelle, who was diagnosed with a ductal carcinoma and elected to follow a largely alternative route for treatment following a double mastectomy. By contrast, Julie, a 20-year cancer survivor, unlike many others in the book, decided not to make any major changes to her diet or lifestyle after her ordeal with the disease. The work tackles this difficult topic in a head-on manner. The rapid movement from the author’s diagnosis to surgery and beyond shows just how quickly one’s life can be completely and permanently transformed by the malady—poignantly, the author observes how “breast cancer survivors live in fear that their cancer will return.” Although some of the advice on offer seems basic (such as a recommendation for those diagnosed with breast cancer to check out certain Facebook groups), Scattergood’s no-nonsense attitude makes the book work. While descriptions of diarrhea brought on by medication and oozing wounds from a mastectomy may not be inspirational, they bring to light the harsh realities of the disease. In the end, an entreaty to carpe diemcaps off the material—while this is not a revolutionary message, its wisdom has been hard-won.

A tough and honest account of fighting a devastating disease.