I had a mastectomy in 1998, and then chemo.
The cancer I had is not at all equal to other people's cancer. I've never had to have chemotherapy; I haven't had to have a mastectomy.
I made the choice to have the double mastectomy, and for me it felt like the right choice, and it turned out to be the right choice.
One of my first thoughts I had when I started considering the mastectomy was, 'What am I going to look like?' And then, 'What will my husband think?'
For me it was just more important to get the cancer out. With the double mastectomy I now have less than one per cent chance of getting it back, otherwise it was 20, 30 or 40 per cent chance and for me it wasn't worth it.
I'll never forget the day that I was told I would have to have a mastectomy. My reaction to the words was total denial.
One day, right after my mastectomy, I went for a walk in Central Park, and there was this mob of people blocking the road. I thought, 'Oh, great, now I'm stuck!' but then I suddenly realized that it was a breast cancer walk.
I would like to take the stigma away. 'Mastectomy' the word seemed so scary to me at first. After doing research and seeing the advancements, the surgery has come a long way from 20 years ago. The results can be incredible.
When I had cancer - of the colon first, followed by breast cancer and a mastectomy - my motto used to be 'Drips by day, Prada by night.' I felt that I had to grasp it in the same way as you'd take on any challenge.
I am the sky and nothing can stick to me. The sky is open and vast and stays unchanged no matter what; it is always the sky. A storm can roll through it, an airplane can roar through, and it is always the sky.
