More than 100,000 women in Switzerland are affected by breast cancer, many of whom are mothers. During Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October, the Cancer League is therefore focusing on these women: on the day-to-day challenges they face, and on how they can be supported and given some respite.
What the campaign shows
For KREBSMAMA, the Cancer League spent a day with three people affected by cancer from three different linguistic regions, following them through their daily lives. Céline from French-speaking Switzerland with a one-year-old child, Nadja from German-speaking Switzerland with four children and a farm, and Chloé from Ticino, a single mum with two children. What we see is not a story of illness, but of patience. Mothers who are there for their children, even though they are in pain. Fathers and children who pitch in. And breaks that are non-negotiable.
Why this needs to be made clear
When a mother falls ill, she carries on as normal because everyday life demands it. Her own needs come last. Yet breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in women. If detected early, it is often treatable and the chances of a full recovery are better.
How does the Cancer League help?
When there's a gap between medical appointments that nobody feels responsible for filling, that's exactly when the Cancer League steps in. The Cancer League has been in existence for over 110 years. With 18 cantonal and regional Cancer Leagues, it is firmly established throughout Switzerland and is funded largely through donations. Its social workers take care of the paperwork that patients simply don't have the energy for after treatment, and know their way round insurance companies and government departments. They are there to listen when everyone at home has already had so much to cope with. And they stay in touch, even long after treatment has finished. Through the KrebsInfo advice service, families can speak to a specialist without an appointment. It's all free of charge. The problem is that many families simply don't know this service exists.
Those three days of filming have resulted in a film. It really hits home: krebsliga.ch/krebsmama