Candy Ladd doesn’t forget the day in January she was diagnosed with breast cancer, or the emotional toll the diagnosis took on her.
“Cancer has a way of stripping things down – your hair, your energy, your self-esteem, your patience,” Ladd said. “But it also strips away the unnecessary. Suddenly, you see what truly matters – faith, love and the people who walk beside you when you can’t walk on your own.
“And humor? Oh, humor is holy, too. I’ve learned that laughter is one of God’s medicines. It doesn’t cure cancer, but it sure cures the soul. I’ve laughed to keep from crying, and sometimes I laugh while I cry.”
Given her faith, Ladd has transformed the word “chemo,” short for chemotherapy, into an acronym for “Christ Heals Every Moment in Overflow.” A “powerful mix,” as she called it, of science, faith and sheer willpower was her battle plan.
The real chemotherapy took Ladd on a wild ride.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
“My skin changed, my nails blackened, and my immune system decided to take an extended vacation,” she said. “And then there was hair loss. That moment when clumps of my hair would come out from a simple brush reminded me that cancer not only attacked my body, it was killing my spirit. But even in those moments, I found strength I didn’t even know I had because every strand that fell reminded me there was healing happening, and that medicine was simply doing its job.”
Ladd shared her breast cancer journey Wednesday before a full ballroom at the Pine Bluff Country Club for the annual Pretty in Pink! luncheon. Her cancer has been in remission for two months.
“Through it all, I learned no one fights alone,” Ladd said. “A strong support system is not just helpful. It saved my life. When I couldn’t pray, somebody prayed for me.”
Other cancer survivors — the longest surviving patient in the ballroom going on 20-plus years — were recognized at the luncheon, organized by the Jefferson Regional Foundation. The event benefits Jefferson Regional’s Jones-Dunklin Cancer Center, where Ladd was treated.
“I’ve gained friendships and relationships that I will cherish forever,” Ladd said.
Dr. Kathleen Sitarik, a radiologist at Jefferson Regional, shared that breast cancer rates have steadily decreased by 44% from 1989 through 2022. Today, 1 in 8 women will develop breast cancer, Sitarik revealed.
Women are encouraged to begin self-breast exams in their 20s and start undergoing screening for breast cancer at age 40. Early detection equals a higher survival rate and more treatment options, Sitarik said.
Jefferson Regional suggests healthy lifestyle choices one can take to prevent breast cancer, including maintaining a healthy weight, not smoking, exercising, limiting alcohol intake, limiting post-menopausal hormone use and breastfeeding if possible.
