Dear Next President,

                      Do you have a family member or friend who has breast cancer? If so you                       probably understand how hard it is to think about that they haven't found a cure yet but have found treatments. This is very important to me because my mom has breast cancer and she takes medication that has different side effects. Too many people it’s hard to think about a friend or family member who has cancer and cannot be cured yet. A cure for breast cancer is important because it doesn’t just affect the person diagnosed with breast cancer but also affects their family and friends. It affects them as well because we don’t know if they’ll be okay or how long it will be until there’s a cure to help them.

                 More than 200,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with breast                         cancer per year. Ages that are affected go from newborns to 60 years or older. All of these people have things that they want to accomplish but might not be able to because of side effects such as redness, discomfort, and more. My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2011 when I was in first grade going into second. At that age I wasn’t sure what was happening I thought she was okay and didn’t have pain. I thought she was just sick, not cancer sick. As I get older I understand that she is dealing with pain which hurts because I didn't know what to do. All I could do was whatever was needed to help her out.

                  People go through many steps such as tests, surgeries, and treatments.                                  The difference between treatment and cure to me is that treatment means that it’s controlling it, but cure means they're okay and don't have to go through any more pain that they don’t deserve to go through. I might not know how the pain feels, but I do know it can affect their everyday lives that they want to live to the fullest. Imagine losing your hair, having aches, pains, and on top of that, you have side effects from your medication as well. I think these cancer fighters put on a brave face everyday making more people smile even when they might be down. Many friends or family of a person diagnosed with cancer probably want to help so badly but might not know what to do to help; I might have some ideas.

              To help our loved ones we can ask communities to donate money. We can raise                      this money by having fundraisers such as a 5k run, a raffle, bingo, and many more ideas. We can also ask schools to hold a bake sale, or can bring in things that they can sell and have a flea market. Some other ideas include having a pollyanna where we put people's names who are going through breast cancer or any other cancer and get them gifts that can help them by boosting their spirits. 

               Breast cancer affects many people each day. People in our communities, families,                     and friends who have cancer deserve to live happy and healthy lives with their friends and family. It’s important that we help raise money, awareness, and organize fundraisers for all cancer cures. If we find a cure, people who are diagnosed with breast cancer don’t have to suffer the pain that many have already dealt with. Another plus on finding a cure is that they can be happy that cancer doesn’t affect them any longer and can say, “I am a cancer survivor”. 

                                                                           Sincerely,

                                                                            Breanna