Last year, Sheila Chandler had just completed radiation treatments and battled fatigue, tenderness, hair loss and all that comes with a lumpectomy, chemotherapy and radiation. This year, the North St. Louis County breast cancer survivor celebrated one year of being cancer-free by attending the Susan G. Komen’s Race for the Cure event in downtown St. Louis. She wanted to share the warmth and joy of that special moment with other breast cancer survivors, who understood, better than anyone else ever could.
“Talking to people that have been through it – not necessarily that you need a push, but you need that lift up,” Chandler described. “And the group gave me that. I could talk to not just one person – several people. They have had stage 2 cancer or had cancer worse than I had, or twice and have been back. “
Sadness in the voices and faces of well-meaning family and friends is not always conducive to discussing your own personal fears.
“People will give you sympathy but, sometimes you don’t want to hear, ‘O-o-o-o-h, how are you doing? Are you okay?’ You know they mean well, but it’s like a tone in their voice, and it kind of doesn’t help.” Chandler admitted.
In the group, they can talk openly talk about their fears without taxing the emotions of loved ones.
“It gave me support; somewhere I could talk and understood what I was going through, because either they were going through it or had ‘been there, done that.’”
A few months after she completed treatment, Chandler got in touch with Survivors Helping Survivors, a group started three years ago by American Cancer Society Reach for Recovery volunteer Sandra Jordan, who is also a breast cancer survivor.
Johnson said their purpose is simple – to be available to help anyone at their time of need; sisters and brothers in the fight against cancer through education and support. It is for persons with cancer and persons who have a loved one with cancer. The organization also raises money to support ongoing efforts of the ACS and Komen For the Cure.
“The American Cancer Society has all kinds of information that you need. If you need free items, they will give it to you; if you need transportation to your treatment, they will get that done for you. It’s just a lot of things that they give you, just like Komen, that you need and you don’t have to pay for it,” Johnson said. “And if they can’t give it to you, they will tell you how to go about getting it.
“And Komen, she has made it possible that we get all these free mammograms. That is very important.”
The group is small in number and it includes survivors of both genders who experienced different types of cancer. What they also have in common is that need for an intimate group of people who share, care and help one another find needed resources offered by those life-saving organizations and health care facilities that are in it to win it — through screening, early detection and treatment to survive and thrive.
Johnson added, “We can’t give you any money, but we can tell you where to go to get the help that you need and we can give you the support that you need.”
For Chandler, the warm, inviting atmosphere of the group and close proximity to her home were important.
“When I found Sandra and the group, I was satisfied,” Chandler said. “They were there to help me through and give me information – what I needed.”
With the exception of their summer hiatus, the group meets every third Saturday at the Jamestown Bluffs Branch of the St. Louis County Library in Florissant, Missouri. After the group participates in the Relay for Life later this month, they will meet again in September.
For more information about Survivors Helping Survivors, call 314-606-0375 or email survivorshelpingsurvivors@gmail.com.
