The Pink Daisy Project

In April of 2010, just a month before her 30th birthday, Kristal Reynaga began feeling sharp pains in one breast. "One day it felt like it was on fire," says the Sacramento single mom, who didn't need an awareness campaign to tell her what the painful lumps in her breast might be.

"That really scared me," Kristal says, "so I went to see a nurse and they did a routine breast exam." The exam results called for a mammogram. The mammogram led to a biopsy. And the biopsy results? "It turned out there were something like seven tumors," Kristal recalls. 

Not Another Breast Cancer Awareness Story

By Amy Crelly

A phone call to the Susan G. Komen Foundation (their toll-free number is 1-877-465-6636) connected Kristal to someone on their helpline who asked her some questions—“My age… Was I a mom? My insurance status…”—then offered her some information about various organizations, including the Pink Daisy Project, a non-profit dedicated to helping young women—moms especially—as they battle breast cancer. 

"If I could gather up all the young women facing breast cancer and be their friend, buy their groceries, cook their meals, clean their houses, and care for their children, I would," says Debbie Cantwell, PDP's founder, and a survivor herself."The Pink Daisy Project is the next best thing."

"Everywhere you look, people are raising money for breast cancer research and awareness," says Debbie. "For crying out loud! Who's NOT aware? I want to help people in a way that's not available elsewhere."

 “Most people hear, ‘breast cancer,’ and they think of older women...
  I just wasn’t expecting to start my thirties this way—at all!”

Kristal estimates she received “about $450 to $500 in gift cards for groceries, restaurant meals and gas for three consecutive months... That was June, July and August. So, it pretty much covered me the whole time I was in treatment.”

She underwent chemo—"eight cycles at 80% and some very strong anti-nausea medication." Still, in just the first week Kristal lost about 10 pounds from her already thin frame. “I got really sick." Her immune system weakened, she had to battle serious infections on top of the cancer. “With chemotherapy," she explains, "there are so many things that can go wrong with your body." The side effects, too, make recovery difficult ("insomnia is a major issue"), not to mention how tough everyday mom duties become.

 “Breast cancer very definitely is a bitch.
But the world of breast cancer has an upside.
It’s the power of the Sisterhood. And it’s a force to be reckoned with!”
– Debbie Cantwell, survivor, mom and creator of  The Pink Daisy Project,
sharing her thoughts in PDP’s September e-newsletter

Kristal says the support helped keep her spirits up, too, and it allowed her to be there for her son. While living on disability meant they had to cut back on some things they were accustomed to, the gift cards allowed them to make the most of those days when Kristal felt well enough to get out of the house. “We were able to keep what I call our ‘date night,’ when we go out for dinner or see a movie. He loves that—being able to spend quality time with Mommy, outside of the house.”

If you have a friend or family member battling breast cancer,
check out "8 Ways to Help Mothers with Cancer"

The organization has offered all kinds of support to moms in need, including helping with medical costs for underinsured patients and even saving one woman from being evicted just two days after she underwent chemotherapy. It's the kind of practical, impassioned mom-to-mom support that truly expands the definition of "sisterhood."

The Pink Daisy Project was named after founder Debbie Cantwell's Grandma Daisy, the first "pink warrior" to inspire her. To find out more about the 501(c)3 nonprofit, link to PinkDaisyProject.com.