Sandra Lee, the Emmy-winning Food Network star and New York Times best-selling author of 25 books, has always shared her “smart and simple” tips to help people live easier and better lives.
So when she was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer in March—followed by a bilateral mastectomy in May and complications due to an infection in early August—she shared her story with her fans, and the world.
When she sat down with Parade a few weeks ago, the 49-year-old TV chef, and partner of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, talked about what she most wants people to know about her breast cancer experience. Here are excerpts from the conversation, outlining the five things she wants everyone to know about breast cancer:
A supportive partner can make all the difference:
“When you go through something like a cancer diagnosis, you learn even more about who people are. I learned how supportive, sweet and available Andrew can be when it matters most. When I was first diagnosed, we went away for four days to make a decision about what I was going to do next. That was a really important time for us. It helps that we aren’t kids; we’ve been together for 10 years and we’re very clear about how our life together will be. For example, we’re very protective of Andrew’s daughters, Michaela, 18, and twins Cara and Mariah, 20. it was very important for us to decide how to tell them—together—about my diagnosis.”
A cancer diagnosis will rock your world in ways you never imagined:
“I’ll never forget the moment after my annual mammogram when my radiologist told me there were four different places throughout one of my breasts that looked different from the year before. Even before I got a cancer diagnosis, I remember thinking, My breasts were nice and now they’re killing me—so get them off.”
Don’t negotiate with cancer:
“At the end of the day, you don’t want to see what cancer is going to do to you. You have to take a leap and do what you have to do to get rid of it. I truly believe—and so did my surgeon—in being aggressive with treatment and care so I’ll be around for 10 years, 20 years and hopefully way more.”
This is a time when you need your girlfriends:
“I have a great girl gang—we’re all very open, honest and loving. So as soon as this happened, we took action—as in ‘Who knows who?’ and ‘Who are the best doctors?’… The response from friends should always be, ‘What do you need right now?’ For example, when I couldn’t keep anything down, my girlfriend must have spent $80 getting me chopped watermelon, since that was the only thing I wanted to eat.”
It’s empowering to share your story:
“I look at my Facebook followers and Twitter ‘sisters,’ which is what I call them, as an extension of my family… I have a very cool fan base, and many people who follow me have gone through cancer or have watched others go through treatment. All of them have been a real inspiration to me… In the end, what’s most important to me is to use this challenge to help others and for people to benefit from what happened to me. I want other women to be saved.”
For more on Sandra Lee, and an update on where the fight against breast cancer stands today, see Sunday’s Parade, or go to parade.com