you by Jim Adler, the Texas
Hammer. And welcome back to The
Factor on Censored. Houstonia is
doing everything she can to
support her mother and her older
sister. One month after Mika
Diamond's mother, Pernilla
Morris, had mastectomy surgery
to treat her breast cancer, Mika
Sister Donata, former, learned
she was diagnosed with stage one
breast cancer as well. And Mika
says she's doing her best as
join us here on the Factor
uncensored for this national
breast reconstruction Awareness
Day. Glad to have you all here
made you take this extraordinary
step not only to bring awareness
but to support your family?
Well, I've actually been
supporting breast cancer
organizations for over ten
hit, did you ever think you'd
find yourself in this spot? I
had never thought I would find
myself in this spot. One because
you hear it has to be hereditary
close, close family had suffered
with that diagnosis of breast
cancer. So I never thought that
I would be in this position. I
softness for being supportive of
breast cancer organizations and
those who were going through
their diagnosis. And Prunella,
when you got your diagnosis,
what was that like for you to
hear that news? As It was, it
April the 13th of this year, and
Mika was out of town. I didn't
want to talk, you know, tell my
oldest daughter. So I just kind
kept it to myself because I
wanted to make sure that and how
long did you keep it private? Um
Mika found out about it. Must
have been Monday. Or when she
got back from out of town. I
just sort. The lady that I
confided in was very good, and
so she. She helped me to. To be
able to deal with what? And was
that as a result of what? Mika
Yeah. Yes. She has surrounded
benefited both of us have
benefited from a lot of the
people that Mika knows during
this counseling and Donato, when
like for you? Unbelievable.
Because as we had already been
through it with my mother and so
I thought that it's probably
just it's not cancer. And when
the doctor told me it was cancer
, all I could say was really
like, I just it surprised me.
And I didn't want to tell them
my mother and my sister. Wow,
Y'all keeping these secrets from
each other? Well I just didn't
want them to because we had just
got over. Gotten over. My mother
had just. Just She was diagnosed
after I had my mastectomy and I
was deemed cancer free. I'm
cancer free now. And then all of
a sudden it happens to her. It
was a lot to take in. Now, were
you you were stage one, though,
right? Really early stage one. I
was stage zero. Okay. Wow And so
what advice do you have for
other women out there who may be
listening, who may not know who
to turn to, who to tell? The
first thing is, please, please,
please go get your mammograms
because the type of cancer that
I had is only detected through
through the mammograms or the
biopsies. You can't feel it. You
don't see it. It's hidden. So
you have to have the mammogram
to find it. And the earlier you
find it, the better. That's what
happened for me. They detected
out of the ducts. So that's why
I would stay zero. All right.
And Mika, your advice for women
out there? Obviously you've been
working with this campaign and
quite some time now that it's
hit home. Yeah some of the
things that I would say is, you
know, get surrounded by those
who will be supportive if you
things that I would also say is
for, as my mother shared, is to
get those mammograms at and not
listen to the myths of it has to
go back to the early stages of
it has to be somebody that's in
your family that's been
diagnosed and you have to be 40
years old to get the mammogram.
So I would share with them, you
yourself when it comes to health
and get those mammograms. If you
feel do those self-exam, because
some people, they do find it by
a self-exam and they don't find
it by an actual mammogram. So
you just have to be an advocate
for yourself. Pay attention to
your body. And then also, once
you are diagnosed, get support
from the support groups,
different insurance companies
that has the resources that will
ladies, thank you for joining us
here on The Factor on Censored.
We appreciate you and I'm sure
you've helped many other women
out there. Thank you guys for
joining. Thank you so much.