Cissy Chastain will wear Georgia State blue while she cheers on her son, Clay, who is a holder on special teams and a backup tight end, during Saturday’s Cure Bowl in Orlando.
But she will also wear some pink, associated with breast cancer, because she is a survivor of the disease. She is an example of the people the Cure Bowl has dedicated itself to helping. The bowl made a pledge to work with its partner the Breast Cancer Research Foundation advance research to eradicate breast cancer.
“It’s (the game) a special thing,” Chastain said. “It’s my 10th year as my breast-cancer survivor.”
Chastain was adopted when she was a few weeks old. Because she didn’t know her family history, she underwent early screening for breast cancer. The tests came back negative.
Two years later, she felt a lump high in her left breast.
She made an appointment with her doctor. The day was Sept. 8, one day after her 20th wedding anniversary. She was 40 years old.
During the visit Chastain could tell that her doctor was alarmed. She was sent straight to a radiologist, who sent her straight to a surgeon.
Three doctors in one day.
“That doesn’t happen very much,” Chastain said. “That told me it was pretty alarming.”
She was diagnosed with invasive ductal carcinoma.
She had a double mastectomy in October.
The hardest part was shaving her head after her hair started to fall out because of the chemotherapy. She said it may sound superficial, but for a woman to lose her hair is unexpected. She said it was the only time her husband, Bruce, a fountain of positive energy during the ordeal, cracked.
Clay was 12 years old, the youngest of three kids, and doesn’t remember much about what was happening.
That was by design. Cissy said she and Bruce tried to keep things as normal as possible for the kids, Laura Beth, Butch and Clay. If neither Cissy nor Bruce could get them to their various sports practices or games, friends of the family or members of their church would.
Though they tried to maintain positive everyday routines, there were times Cissy’s mind would wander to the negative.
“I was scared of not being here to see my kids,” she said. “Still, you just live with it. They can’t cure you completely, but they can treat the symptoms.”
Chastain said she was lucky to have people in her life who kept her spirits high. She urged anyone who has put off screenings or has any suspicion that they may have cancer to go see a doctor.
“You just have to keep up with your body,” she said. “Don’t put it off.”
The Chastains aren’t the only ones who have been affected. During Wednesday’s kickoff party, Georgia State’s and San Jose State’s players, coaches and others associated with both programs were asked to raise their hands if they have been affected by cancer. Many hands went up. San Jose State safety Simon Connette lost his mother to cancer earlier this year. The mother of another Spartans player is fighting the disease.
Georgia State football coach Trent Miles’ family has been beset by various forms of the disease. His mother, who is coming to the game, has breast cancer, but he said she is doing well. His father had prostate cancer. An uncle died of pancreatic cancer. Those are just a few members of his family who have been affected.
So the Cure Bowl, while special because it’s the first postseason game in Georgia State’s football history, is a little more special to Miles because of what it stands for.
“It’s bigger than just going to a bowl game,” he said. “It stands for something much bigger than us.”
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