The tennis legend Martina Navratilova has revealed on Wednesday that she is undergoing therapy for breast cancer. She has always been revered for her health and performance. Just a month short of her 50th birthday, Navratilova won her last grand slam title, the mixed doubles at the 2006 US Open, and in retirement she wrote a 'how-to' book about good living. She was a winner of a record nine Wimbledon singles titles, 59 grand slam titles, including 18 singles trophies and arguably the greatest female athlete of all time.
Hers is luckily a more non-invasive form of breast cancer called ductal carcinoma in situ, or DCIS, which means the cancer is confined to the milk ducts and has not spread to the surrounding tissue. According to her doctors she has a good chance of overcoming the disease. Navratilova came forward with the revelation herself in People magazine and Good Morning America. She went on to talk about how traumatic the positive biopsy report had been for her calling it “my own personal 9/11.” “It knocked me off my ass, really…I feel so in control of my life and my body, and then this comes, and it's completely out of my hands.” She had to undergo a surgery to remove the lump (lumpectomy) around mid-March and is scheduled to start a 4-6 week radiation therapy session in May.
She said that she had neglected getting regular mammograms and takes this opportunity to urge other women to get regular checkups. Initially she had wanted to keep this under the wraps. Then she decided to open up so that other women realize how dangerous it can be to neglect regular checkups. “I went four years between mammograms,'' she told People. “I let it slide. Everyone gets busy, but don't make excuses. I stay in shape and eat right, and it happened to me. Another year and I could have been in big trouble’” she said. Navratilova is a health spokeswoman for AARP and said, “Here I am, the health and fitness ambassador for AARP, speaking to millions each month about staying healthy and I let my annual check-ups fall to the bottom of my to-do list. It's not all about eating right and exercising. Preventative steps can make just as much, or in some cases more, of a difference. Getting my mammogram literally saved my life.”
She refuses to be down with the disease and intends to move on. She said, “I'm not one to stay in the problem for long, and almost straight away I wanted to know what I could be doing about it… I'm not the sort of person who wants to sit around feeling sorry for myself.” She has continued to remain active with tennis, hockey and also triathlons and plans to continue working. In fact her radiation sessions are planned in Paris so that she could do television commentary on the French Open in the city. After that she wants to move to London for the Wimbledon Championships.
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