The Breast Cancer Diaries

In the open, honest, and non-exploitative The Breast Cancer Diaries, director Linda Pattillo chronicles nine months in the life of former newscaster and stay-at-home mom Ann Murray Paige. At 38, Ann and her husband Sandy were planning on a third child when she received the diagnosis of breast cancer. Based in Portland, ME, Ann returns to her Boston hometown for surgery and follow-up visits (although cancer was found in only one breast, Ann chooses to have a double mastectomy, because she doesn't “ever want to hear the words, ‘You have breast cancer' again.”). Ann's treatment coincides with a freelance assignment, so her first order of business is to start shopping for wigs, since she'll lose her hair once the chemotherapy and radiation kick in (although, unlike many women involved in a field where appearance plays a part, she decides against reconstructive surgery). Adopting a positive but never-Pollyanna-ish attitude, Ann benefits from the support of her family and friends, who share her sense of humor and gladly sport the “cancer sucks” buttons she gives them. Optimism, however, doesn't negate doubts, tears, and criticism (which she expresses in regards to her insurance company's requirement that she leave the hospital almost immediately after surgery—a practice that has led to the increasingly common phrase “drive-through mastectomy”). In addition to her subject's thoughts and impressions, Pattillo captures the reactions of Ann's young son, who is alternately helpful and confused. Ann spends the rest of the film shopping for prostheses, watching her toddler daughter take her first steps, and celebrating her sixth wedding anniversary. In other words: life goes on. A powerful, personal look at a devastating disease that strikes one in seven women, this is highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)