Katie Couric Announces Breast Cancer Diagnosis

Katie Couric revealed on Instagram that she was diagnosed with breast cancer in June, writing, “Every two minutes, a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer in the United States. On June 21st, I became one of them. As we approach #BreastCancerAwarenessMonth, I wanted to share my personal story with you all and encourage you to get screened and understand that you may fall into a category of women who needs more than a mammogram.”

The former “Today” and “CBS Evening News” anchor further detailed her diagnosis in an essay published on her website. Couric, who underwent surgery for breast cancer in July and began radiation treatments on Sept. 7, also noted that her first husband, Jay Monahan, died from colon cancer at 42, while her sister died at 54 from pancreatic cancer. That she herself got cancer left her with a “suspended animation feeling.”

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“My mood quickly shifted from disbelief to resignation,” Couric added. “Given my family’s history of cancer, why would I be spared? My reaction went from ‘Why me?’ to ‘Why not me?'”

Couric told her two daughters about her diagnosis four days after she discovered the news, writing, “I FaceTimed each of them. I tried to be as reassuring as Dr. Newman. Their faces froze in disbelief. Then shock. Then they began to cry. ‘Don’t worry,’ I told Carrie then Ellie, ‘I’m going to be fine,’ trying to convince myself as well as them. They’d already lost one parent. The idea of losing another was unfathomable.”

“Please get your annual mammogram,” Couric added later in the essay. “I was six months late this time. I shudder to think what might have happened if I had put it off longer. But just as importantly, please find out if you need additional screening.”

Head over to Couric’s website to read her essay in its entirety.

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