When Suzette Simon found out she had breast cancer in her right breast after a routine mammogram, her first thought was: I’m sorry, mom.
“I knew my mom had had breast cancer, so I was always diligent about getting mammograms and staying healthy,” she said. “But when I got cancer, I was like, What did I do? What have I not learned from her experience? I didn’t want her death to be in vain.”
The New York-based comedian, producer, and founder of NY Laughs, a nonprofit that produces free comedy programming in public spaces, was diagnosed in January 2020 with stage II ER-positive breast cancer. She immediately kicked it into gear to find her care team, interviewing several oncologists and surgeons across hospitals.
See “Research is the reason I can still make people smile” on the Breast Cancer Research Foundation website (March 19, 2021)