JANICE DICKINSON has revealed that she has been diagnosed with breast cancer. During a routine medical check-up at the beginning of March, the supermodel's doctor found a small lump in her breast which subsequently tested positive for early-stage cancer.
"It's hard for me to say this, but I have been diagnosed with breast cancer," Dickinson told the Daily Mail. "It's still quite shocking. Today I got very scared. I just got very scared and it hit me. But I am not gonna let that define me, the fear. I'm going to get through this, I'll be just fine kiddo. You can't be brave and fierce and all the things that people know you from - reality television, from the fashion industry, from being the world's first supermodel, from being a judge, from being a writer, a photographer, from being an AIDS activist."
Due to the type of breast cancer that Dickinson has - ductal carcinoma in situ, which is localised to the milk duct area - she will undergo radiation therapy to target the cancerous cells and take a course of medication as opposed to chemotherapy which would be necessary if the cancer had spread to surrounding breast tissue. A mastectomy has at this stage been ruled out, according to her fiancé Rocky Gerner.
Dickinson, whose mother died of cancer, revealed her shock when she first heard her diagnosis, but insisted that with the help of her family she will find the courage to fight the disease and offer support to other women going through the same experience.
"We're gonna get there, we're gonna all get there together. I'm going to tell my truth. I'm doing this for women, I really want for this experience to be for women of all ages," she said, advising women to "have regular breast examinations please. Girls past 30 it's very important. I'm here for women all over the world, women are to be cherished, mothers, daughters, sisters, you must remind yourselves."
