Frances Barnes (photo courtesy Look Good Feel Better)

By Teagan Rasche

Local woman shares her story during Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Oct 15, 2021 | 11:24 AM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and a Medicine Hat woman is sharing her story hoping to help others.

During a routine mammogram last August, Frances Barnes was told she had a very small lump.

The cancer was a lot more aggressive than originally thought and it had moved into her lymph nodes. Barnes started chemotherapy in October 2020 and finished in February 2021.

She started radiation in March and finished in April.

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Now, Barnes is feeling better and has more energy again. She says cancer is an everyday thing and should be talked about all year long, not just in October during Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

“Let’s not spend all our time trying to cure cancer, let’s talk about getting it so people don’t ever get cancer,” Barnes said. “I kept saying, you know, what could I have done differently; there’s nothing. They have no idea why I got it. For many people, it is that case.”

Barnes says support looks different for everyone battling cancer and the best thing to do is ask how to best help others.