The scars breast cancer leaves on our bodies tell a story. What will yours say?
BY Bonnie Annis
PUBLISHED January 23, 2018
Bonnie Annis is a breast cancer survivor, diagnosed in 2014 with stage 2b invasive ductal carcinoma with metastasis to the lymph nodes. She is an avid photographer, freelance writer/blogger, wife, mother and grandmother.
Merriam Webster's dictionary defines the word “scar” as: 1) a scar as a mark remaining (as on the skin) after injured tissue has healed, 2) a mark left where something was previously attached, 3) a mark or indentation (as on furniture) resulting from damage or wear or 4) a lasting moral or emotional injury.
Their definitions are accurate and applicable not only to normal skin wounds, but also to breast cancer. Let's take definition number 1 for example, “a scar as a mark remaining (as on the skin) after injured tissue has healed.” Whether you've had a lumpectomy, mastectomy or bilateral mastectomies, your body will be permanently scarred. Anytime skin is sliced open with a scalpel, no matter how well-trained the surgeon is, a scar will appear after the wound has healed. Skin is the largest organ of the body. It also has remarkable healing abilities. But when the perfect canvas has been opened, the edges never meet properly again. Breast cancer scars are not only lifelong, but they are also life-altering.
Their definitions are accurate and applicable not only to normal skin wounds, but also to breast cancer. Let's take definition number 1 for example, “a scar as a mark remaining (as on the skin) after injured tissue has healed.” Whether you've had a lumpectomy, mastectomy or bilateral mastectomies, your body will be permanently scarred. Anytime skin is sliced open with a scalpel, no matter how well-trained the surgeon is, a scar will appear after the wound has healed. Skin is the largest organ of the body. It also has remarkable healing abilities. But when the perfect canvas has been opened, the edges never meet properly again. Breast cancer scars are not only lifelong, but they are also life-altering.
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