Music And Breast Cancer
- Actress and singer Rita Wilson overcomes breast cancer with new music
- Releases 5th Album, ‘Rita Wilson Now & Forever: Duets.’ a collection of timeless songs from the 70’s
- Wilson has been married to Oscar winner Tom Hanks, 66, since 1988, and has two adult children and a granddaughter.
- She was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, and underwent a mastectomy, followed by reconstructive surgery.
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Her website describes her duet album is “a collection of classic, timeless songs from the Seventies, arranged as duets featuring Rita's crystalline vocals alongside some of the greatest male singers of our time.” The album is set to be released on on September 27.
The Hollywood star has been married to Oscar winner Tom Hanks, 66, since 1988, and has two adult children and a granddaughter.
Their son, Chet, also known as “Chet Haze,” is an actor and rapper who recently turned 32, and has described himself as the “black sheep” of the otherwise wholesome Hanks family.
Wilson at the time, wished her son a happy birthday on Instagram, writing, “…you seek truth, you make us laugh, make Larry David laugh and share a birthday with @barackobama you are and always have been special. You have brought so much joy to our family. We love you so much!!!”
Chet has been embroiled in various controversies over the years.
Most recently, he’s been criticized for declaring the summer of 2021 to be “White Boy Summer” and for controversial remarks he made on Instagram about COVID-19 vaccinations.
Rita Wilson’s Breast Cancer Journey
Wilson was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015.
She underwent a mastectomy, followed by reconstructive surgery, to treat her cancer. The actress and singer's specific diagnosis was invasive lobular carcinoma.
Related: When Should You Consider a Mastectomy?
This type of breast cancer is named for its point of origin: the lobules.
Invasive lobular carcinoma begins in the milk-producing glands, called lobules, of the breast, and may spread to other areas of the body.
Invasive lobular carcinoma only represents a small portion of breast cancers. The most common type of breast cancer starts in the breast ducts.
Treatment options for breast cancer include surgery (via a mastectomy or lumpectomy), chemotherapy, and radiation therapy.
Related: When You're Called Back After a Mammogram: Breaking Down the Numbers
Some people also get preventative mastectomies if there's a history of breast cancer in the family and thus an elevated risk of developing the disease.
When Should You Consider a Mastectomy?
How to Screen for Breast Cancer
Breast cancer is typically detected via a mammogram, the screening method for this type of cancer.
Mammograms look for lumps in the breast tissue and early signs of breast cancer.
Women aged 45 to 54 with an average risk of breast cancer (i.e. no family history of the disease) should have mammograms annually.
Dr. Connie Lehman, the chief of the Breast Imaging Division at Massachusetts General Hospital, says in an earlier interview, "If you haven't gone through menopause yet, I think it's very important that you have a mammogram every year."
"We know that cancers grow more rapidly in our younger patients, and having that annual mammogram can be lifesaving," says Dr. Lehman.
"After menopause, it may be perfectly acceptable to reduce that frequency to every two years. But what I'm most concerned about is the women who haven't been in for a mammogram for two, three, or four years, those women that have never had a mammogram. We all agree regular screening mammography saves lives."
When Should I Get a Mammogram?
Rita Wilson Before And After Breast Cancer
Wilson’s other musical credits include a solo album, ‘AM/FM’, which she released on May 8, 2012, followed by her her second album, ‘Rita Wilson’, in 2014. and her third album ‘Bigger Picture’, released in 2018.
Wilson also has a fourth album, ‘Halfway to Home’ which debuted in 2019.
She’s also an accomplished actress, with Broadway credits as well as film appearances.
Among them, ‘Volunteers’, ‘Sleepless in Seattle’, ‘Now and Then’, ‘That Thing You Do!’, ‘Jingle All the Way’, ‘The Story of Us’, ‘Runaway Bride’, ‘It’s Complicated’, and ‘Larry Crowne’,
Wilson also appeared in the television series ‘The Good Wife.’
In 2020, she bemoaned the impact of COVID-19 on her music.
With COVID-19 safety restrictions in place, concerts were cancelled in large numbers, music festivals were postponed, and even awards ceremonies went virtual.
In a previous Instagram post, Wilson wrote candidly, “I'm sure all of us music fans & musicians can agree: it's been a hard, devastating road for our beloved concerts.”
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