Powering Through Life's Challenges, Including Cancer
- Singer-songwriter Carly Simon, 81, a popular singer during the ‘70s, ‘80s, and ‘90s, says her 9-year marriage to fellow singer James Taylor grew more turbulent over time as he dealt with addiction. The two no longer communicate after splitting up.
- Simon has a family history wrought with cancer, including her siblings battling various types of cancers over the years.
- Simon was diagnosed with breast cancer in the late ‘90s. She underwent a double mastectomy (removal of both breasts), reconstructive surgery (reconstruction of the breast after mastectomy), and chemotherapy for treatment.
- A double mastectomy typically takes surgeons about two hours to remove both breasts and eliminate the cancer. If a woman opts to have reconstructive surgery after the mastectomy, surgeons either use an implant or take tissue from elsewhere on the body.
- Sometimes, a double mastectomy is performed to reduce breast cancer risk, especially for women at higher risk who have a family history of the disease or possess the BRCA gene mutation.
Singer-songwriter Carly Simon, 81, storied career includes two GRAMMY Awards, notable hits like “The Right Thing to Do,” a turbulent marriage to singer James Taylor, and beating breast cancer just a few years later.
Her relationship with Taylor emerged at the height of her music career and worsened over time. The “Mockingbird” singer said of their marriage, the “unknowables started to creep in.”
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After splitting from her former partner, Simon continued to focus on her music career throughout the ‘80s and ‘90s with hits like “As Time Goes By” and “Touched by the Sun.”
In the late ’90s, Simon would face a different kind of adversity: breast cancer.
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Simon’s History With Cancer
Simon’s family was no stranger to cancer. Her sister Joanna Simon, an opera singer, and her other sister Lucy Simon, a Broadway composer, were both deeply impacted by cancer.
Joanna was 85 when she passed away after battling thyroid cancer. This kind of cancer is “a disease in which cancer cells form in the tissues of the thyroid gland,” the National Cancer Institute explains.
Carly’s other sister, Lucy, was 82 when she passed away from metastatic breast cancer.
Metastatic breast cancer, also called “stage four” breast cancer, means that the cancer has spread, or metastasized, beyond the breasts to other parts of the body. There is technically no cure, but advancements in treatments can dramatically improve outcomes, which is something to be hopeful about.
Carly also lost a brother to cancer in 2018 from cardiac arrest. He also battled lung cancer, according to The Martha’s Vineyard Times.
According to the National Cancer Institute (NCI), “Cancer cannot be passed down from parents to children, and genetic changes in tumor cells can’t be passed down.” However, a “genetic change that increases the risk of cancer can be inherited.”
“I am filled with sorrow to speak about the passing of Joanna and Lucy Simon. Their loss will be long and haunting. As sad as this day is, it’s impossible to mourn them without celebrating the incredible lives that they lived,” Carly Simon said to Deadline in a statement.
There are several cancer types where having a family history of cancer serves as a cancer risk factor, which can increase the risk of getting the cancer. An example of an inherited mutated gene is the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene, which increases the chance of developing breast and/or ovarian cancer.
WATCH: Testing for BRCA in Breast Cancer Works.
Inherited genetic changes may cause up to 10 percent of all cancers, the NCI says.
While it remains unclear if the Simon family possessed the BRCA gene mutation, it does run in families and can elevate cancer risk.
BRCA is two genes (BRCA1 and BRCA2). According to the National Cancer Institute, BRCA1 (Breast Cancer gene 1) and BRCA2 (Breast Cancer gene 2) are genes that produce proteins that work to repair damaged DNA.
The BRCA genes are sometimes called tumor suppressor genes because their changes or mutations can lead to cancer.
Everyone is born with two copies of each BRCA gene, one inherited from each parent. If either parent carries a BRCA gene mutation, there’s a 50-50 chance the child will also have it.
When BRCA1 or BRCA2 have certain mutations or changes, men and women are at a higher risk level for several cancers, most notably breast and ovarian cancer in women.
WATCH: Understanding the BRCA Gene Mutation
Carly’s Cancer Diagnosis
Carly was diagnosed with breast cancer in October 1997 after discovering a lump in her left breast. She told The New York Daily News, “It takes some time to get used to the fear of having it. But, I’ve always thought of myself as being a warrior,” Deseret News reports.
The singer chose to share her diagnosis publicly to avoid tabloids at the time from exaggerating her condition, the Hartford Courant reports.
Carly, a mother of two, was initially confronted with the option of “monitoring the lump,” which existed “for years,” according to Sportskeeda. However, the “Nobody Does It Better” singer chose to get a second medical opinion, which had a different approach to treating her cancer.
Another person who strongly advocates a second medical opinion is Dr. Steven Rosenberg, chief of surgery at the National Cancer Institute and one of America’s most renowned cancer doctors.
“If I had any advice for you following a cancer diagnosis, it would be, first, to seek out multiple opinions as to the best care because finding a doctor who is up to the latest information is important,” Rosenberg previously told SurvivorNet. “And it’s always important to get other opinions so that you can make the best decisions for yourself in consultation with your care providers,” Dr. Rosenberg told SurvivorNet.
Simon was advised to have the tumor removed via a double mastectomy followed by reconstructive surgery.
A double mastectomy is a procedure that involves having both breasts removed to get rid of cancer.
“A double mastectomy typically takes about two hours for the cancer part of the operation, the removing of the tissue,” Dr. Elisa Port, Chief of Breast Surgery at Mount Sinai Health System, tells SurvivorNet.
WATCH: What Happens During a Double Mastectomy
“The real length, the total length of the surgery, can often depend on what type of reconstruction [a patient] has.” To reconstruct the breast, surgeons can either use an implant or transplant tissue from elsewhere in the body.
“Breast reconstruction is a restoration of a woman’s form and her sense of self,” says Dr. Andrea Pusic, Chief of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
Many different options and techniques are available for reconstruction, from implants to using a woman’s tissue and choices about when to get the reconstruction, meaning immediate (at the time of mastectomy) or delayed (which could be months or even years later).
All these different techniques are “getting close to that goal of letting a woman be herself again” and putting the cancer behind her, says Dr. Pusic.
WATCH: Deciding If Reconstruction Is Right for You
After undergoing breast cancer surgery, Simon underwent chemotherapy treatments.
“I was in the hospital for one night. Because they got everything during the procedure and the prognosis was good, my doctor gave me the option of whether to have chemo. I decided to play it safe,” Simon said at the time, according to CNN.
In the wake of her breast cancer journey, Simon got back to writing music and used her experience with cancer as a source of inspiration.
Writing music had been challenging for her until after finishing cancer treatment. Songs like “Scar” were inspired by her cancer journey, though she did not mention cancer explicitly.
“I got breast cancer right at the height of my writer’s block,” Simon said, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
What To Ask Your Doctor
If you have been diagnosed with breast cancer, you may have questions about keeping your strength through treatment. Here are a few questions to help you begin the conversation with your doctor:
- What treatment will I be receiving?
- What side effects are associated with this treatment?
- Are there steps I can take daily to help minimize these side effects?
- What physical activity routine do you recommend for me during treatment?
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.
