Kim J. Forehand
BRCA1

I was living in Napa, California in 1993, when I heard about the exciting work that Dr. Mary-Claire King was doing in her laboratory nearby, in Berkeley. (She is the geneticist who discovered that there was a mutation on a single gene that was responsible for “inherited breast cancer”, and named it BRCA1). Having seen my maternal grandmother die from breast cancer when I was a child (and she was just 47 years old), my mother diagnosed when she was 42, and various cousins and aunts struggling with the disease, I suspected that I’d qualify for the study. I was right, and I chose to participate.

A few months later I received a phone call from Dr. King’s office, and was told that I tested positive for the gene. I will always remember those moments afterward. I calmly ended the conversation, then walked over to the kitchen sink, and leaned over it (as if I’d vomit). Shaking all over, I felt like I had a gun to my head and didn’t know when it would go off. I was 32 years old at the time.

More than fifteen years have passed since then. Today, (knock on wood), I am healthy, and I have a son! (born in 1997). So far, I have chosen to forego many of the options (such as ovarectomy, prophylactic mastectomy, and tamoxifen) that have been recommended to me by many medical professionals. I believe that a macrobiotic diet has kept me cancer-free, and, as an unintended outcome, it has improved my overall health - reversing the deteriorating condition of my teeth and gums, improving my digestion, and creating the increase in fertility that made possible the healthy pregnancy and natural childbirth I experienced in my late 30s. In conjunction with my macrobiotic practice, I’ve benefited from other alternative therapies including psychotherapy, meditation, and yoga, which boost immune system functioning, help the body cope with stress, and enhance personal happiness. I’ve concluded from my research and experiences that my body needs better care than the standard American diet and lifestyle provide. I don’t practice any single alternative therapy perfectly, but I do my best in all of these area (and others, when I have time).

It hasn’t always been smooth sailing, however. Early on, (when I was unaware of the alternative therapies that exist, and the positive actions I could take), I had a brief (but terrifying) bout with fibrocystic breast disease and other conditions, and I’ve mulled over many opinions from varied medical professionals, and endured many medical procedures and tests. I’ve also spoken with many women who’ve made different choices, and told me about their experiences. My own mother is very committed to western medicine. She has had many surgeries, chemotherapy, radiation, years of tamoxifen, etc., and, in her late 60s, she is still living.

In my experience, BRCA1 is a complicated diagnosis, with no clear or easy answers, and no guarantees. And each person is different, so what works for one person may not be the best choice for another. For me, so far, the mostly macrobiotic approach is best, and at some point in the early years of my diagnosis, I stopped perceiving BRCA1 as a disease or death sentence, and expecting the medical community to fix it. BRCA1 is my health challenge, and I work on it using macrobiotics, yoga, western medicine, etc. as tools to help me keep this vehicle – my body – running as smoothly as possible, for as long as possible. I believe we were all born into bodies with varying levels of sturdiness. Some people got Toyotas – they can eat junk food, smoke, drink, live a stressful life, and die in their 90s: no maintenance required. Others (due to inherited conditions, poor nutrition during critical fetal developmental stages, declines in nutrient levels of food due to chemical agriculture, etc.) have to work hard to get to the age of 20, or 40, or 60, or 80. We can’t change what we got born into, but we can wake up to our susceptibilities (thanks to gene testing), feel the fear, and then get to work in powerful ways to help our bodies last as long as they can
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I encourage all women who have recently received the information that they have the BRCA1 mutation to consider all the options, get a lot of information from different sources, and talk to a lot of women who’ve been there and taken different paths.
Many wonderful books about macrobiotics are available through the Kushi Institute, and there are places in the U.S. where you can rest, eat well-prepared healing foods, and learn more about food and health. Many educational classes and services are available through the Ki of Life Learning Center in Nashville, Tennessee (where I have been working for two years).

If you sense that you could benefit from my experience, and would like to talk with me, or have me speak to your group (and bring some healthy macrobiotic snacks along for our enjoyment and mutual benefit), send an email to my address: kimjforehand@yahoo.com.