I'LL HAVE A DOUBLE

It might be shocking and humbling to learn that a nice glass of Pinot Noir at the end of a stressful day can be related to cancer activity, but this book is a brave and honest eye-opener about self-sabotage by women diagnosed with breast cancer. Juliana Hastings takes women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer (or are concerned about the potential for a future diagnosis) on a journey of self-assessment to acknowledge the degree to which they are creating a hospitable environment in their bodies for the disease to recur. The book is bracing, instructive, and inspiring. It explains the causal relationship between alcohol and breast cancer, and the cancer-related effects of consumption choices regarding sugar, processed foods, and preservatives. It's mind-opening to understand the science that explains the connection. In simple, relatable language, the book distills decades of research papers from universities and medical research centers the world over in a way that will convince even those who are most reluctant to recognize the links between lifestyle choices and breast cancer.

There is also great hope and inspiration: the choices that leave doors open for cancer cell growth are reversible. Besides the benefits of better lifestyle, food and beverage consumption habits, Juliana shares the science proving that exercise can reduce tumor burden and minimize metastasis. A healthy diet, sans alcohol, with a dose of daily exercise is your prescription for your life fight...and it is a fight! The fight is never over, so survivor women must fight the fight for the rest of their lives. Fight the probability of recurrence, fight the cancer catalysts over which they have control and fight to stay alive. It feels good to do so too!

Juliana can conduct the journey because she has lived it. She was diagnosed with a rare form of papillary carcinoma and quickly learned that the medical complex standard-of-care comprises some combination of surgery, radiation, and/or immunotherapeutic pharmaceuticals, followed by a life overshadowed by the mathematics of probability of recurrence calculations.

Each journey is different, but the strategy for thriving can be the same. In her individual case, the estrogen and progesterone receptors were negative, so there was no drug to help minimize her probability of recurrence, which can be as high as 40% depending on the type of cancer. Juliana's fell in the high percentage category. She chose double mastectomy surgery - hence the book's title, I'll Have A Double - knowing that, afterwards, her fight to survive was 100% up to her. Even women with positive receptors should adopt the mindset and actions that prevent recurrence. Every woman should see the fight against breast cancer as 100% their own responsibility. Just because you are eligible for immunotherapy does not mean you can relax and think you are in the clear. This beast comes back 10, 15, 20 years from original diagnosis. There is no sense of security.

So, how do you fight to prevent your cancer from coming back? While there are no guarantees, your own choices can make your immune system stronger in fending off cancer. Juliana shows women how to honestly assess their diet, drinking, and lifestyle habits to create less hospitable internal and external environments to cancer. Women can avoid going back to old pre-diagnosis and pre-treatment ways of a glass of wine or two 4-5 nights a week, a diet high in sugar, processed foods, and stress. Juliana shows women a better way that's perfectly achievable and comes with the added benefit of self-care and self-reliance.