Chemistry teacher and breast cancer survivor, Rachel Eustice, dyed her hair pink this month to honor Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
“It’s a reminder to me about the importance of breast cancer awareness,” Eustice said. “It gives me something to start the conversation in my pre-AP classes where students aren’t aware that I had breast cancer, so that they can become aware that this disease does affect so many women.”
Four years ago, Eustice became part of the community of 232,570 women who are diagnosed with breast cancer.
“When they [the doctors] stage the cancer they do a biopsies and they do genetics and they give you a prognosis and when I got my prognosis it wasn’t very good,” Eustice said.
Eustice had to undergo seven months of chemotherapy, endure several surgeries and receive daily radiation, before she entered remission.
“They [the doctors] told me that I had a 30% chance of living five years,” Eustice said. “I’m waiting for that five year mark to say okay, I’ve made it my five years.”
In addition to dying her hair, Eustice is involved with Relay for Life and Susan G Komen Race for the Cure to promote cancer awareness and show others that cancer is survivable.
“Chemotherapy, radiation, just hearing the words ‘You have cancer’ is a hard thing to deal with and you just have to say, ‘I’m going to beat this,’” Eustice said. “It is survivable.”
Students can get involved in Breast Cancer Awareness month by attending the Susan G Komen Race for the Cure on Nov. 16th. Registration is $25 and signup can be accessed using http://austin.info-komen.org/site/TR/RacefortheCure/AUS_AustinAffiliate?team_id=318514&pg=team&fr_id=4557.