Issue link: http://viewer.e-digitaleditions.com/i/85232
022: pinkfeature Cancer WWW.BREASTASSOCIATES.CO.NZ BreastNirvana AN ONLINE COMMUNITY EXISTS TO SERVE MEMBERS WITH A COMMON ZEAL. OVER THE YEARS, MORE VIRTUAL GROUPS HAVE APPEARED ONLINE OFFERING BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS A PLATFORM TO SHARE THEIR STORIES AND INSPIRE ONE ANOTHER IN REAL TIME. WWW.SHOCKINGPINK.ORG.NZ Kylie Richardson was only 27 and Cheryle Robins just 34 when, during 2010, they both embarked on something far more unexpected, far more unplanned and far more trying than either of them could ever have imagined. That year turned out to be the year they both got the shock of their lives when they discovered their very own boobs were ticking time-bombs. They would never look at themselves, the future or anything pink in the same way again. They were now members of the most exclusive group – two of the 370 young women aged 20-45, who are diagnosed with breast cancer each year in New Zealand. Driven by a genuine desire to help other young breast WWW.BREAST.CO.NZ cancer sufferers, Kylie and Cheryle created Shocking Pink, a brand new New Zealand charity. Shocking Pink is dedicated to providing information, support and resources to young women (aged 20-45) with breast cancer to help make the journey through – and out the other side – a little easier. At the heart of Shocking Pink is the website www.shockingpink.org.nz – providing an informative, friendly online support and resource centre. Finding the majority of breast cancer resources to be information-based or catering more for the needs of post-menopausal women, both wanted to give a voice to the issues specific to young women facing breast cancer from an experiential point of view. Through their online community, Shocking Pink ensures all young women 'in the pink' have the same support that Kylie and Cheryle found in each other. When having to undergo fertility treatment to ensure you might one day have children, waking up at night from menopausal hot flushes, trying to cope with difficult treatment and even more difficult feelings – the two founders know that without each other their journey would have been unimaginably harder. WWW.PINKMAGAZINE.CO.NZ