Couric has been a public advocate for preventive screenings since her first husband, Jay Monahan, died of colon cancer in 1998 at the age of 42. In 2000, while working on the “Today” show, Couric Got a colonoscopy in the air Encourage the audience to do the same. studies detected That division has led to a substantial rise in colonoscopies; In Wednesday’s post, Couric said the rate is up 20 percent.
A decade ago, Couric co-founded the organization Stand Up to Cancer. In 2018, she went for her first colonoscopy with TV host Jimmy Kimmel, who also aired on his late-night show.
In addition to Monahan, Couric’s sister Emily and mother-in-law Carol died of different cancers. “Others in my family had better outcomes,” Couric said, including her mother, who kept non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma “at bay for a decade.” Her father, who is suffering from prostate cancer. Couric’s current husband, Jon Molnar, had a tumor removed from his liver shortly before their wedding in 2014.
“But breast cancer—that was a new one; I’d practically become an expert on colon and pancreatic cancers, but no one in my family had ever had breast cancer,” she recalled responding to her diagnosis. I found out that 85 percent of women have no family history, and I had a lot to learn.
Couric said she had a tumor removed from her breast in mid-July and began radiation a few weeks ago. Tuesday marked her final round: “I was warned that I might be tired and that my skin might turn a little pink. … My left breast looks like I’ve been sunbathing topless, but other than that, I feel great,” she wrote.
The same tone struck when actress Jane Fonda announced His diagnosis was non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma This month, Couric noted how “lucky” she is to have access to quality care. She felt “grateful and guilty — angry that America has a de facto caste system when it comes to health care.”
She concluded the post by urging readers to schedule missed annual mammograms within six months and find out if they should receive additional screenings.
“To reap the benefits of modern medicine, we must continue our screenings, advocate for ourselves, and ensure that everyone has access to life-saving diagnostic tools,” he wrote.
