These Breast Cancer Quotes Are So Inspiring and Uplifting
As someone with a long family history of breast cancer, I know the importance of saying the right thing all too well. Both of my grandmothers had it (one twice), and I remember feeling like the words coming to mind couldn’t possibly encompass the magnitude of the diagnosis. Breast cancer quotes inspire people in the throws of treatment, offer encouragement to family members, and help those impacted by any level of diagnosis (from stage 0—DCIS—to metastatic).
Breast cancer awareness quotes are also important, reminding people to schedule their annual mammogram, playing an important role in prevention and boosting survival rates by helping to catch it early. Every 14 seconds, someone is diagnosed with breast cancer, according to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF). In 2024, in the United States alone, an estimated 313,510 people will be diagnosed with the disease.
While treatments and screenings advance, you or someone you know has likely been affected by the form of cancer. Bookmark these inspiring quotations to share with those who could benefit from a comforting word.
Inspirational breast cancer quotes
“Cancer survivors are blessed with two lives. There is your life before cancer, and your life after. I am here to tell you your second life is going to be so much better than the first.” —Hoda Kotb
“I started to put myself first. I had voices at the back of my head telling me whatever I did wasn’t good enough. Now, finally, I’ve silenced them.” —Sheryl Crowe
“If I can make my cancer purposeful, [I want to] have people understand that if you feel anything amiss, you have to say something. You might not get a response from your doctor that you like. They might push it off and say you don’t need a test or we’ll get you in at your next physical. But we know our body’s best.” —Clea Shearer
“My scars? I barely see them. I feel whole; I really do. Because every day, I get to say, ‘There’s no cancer.’ I’m healthy, and that’s beautiful.” —Wanda Sykes
“It’s about focusing on the fight, not the fright.” —Robin Roberts
“You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face.” —Eleanor Roosevelt
“A couple years ago I got breast cancer, and that was a good test, because I always said I’m not afraid of dying. And I wasn’t. I mean, I felt, God, I’ve just joined a family of millions of women who have gone through this. And how interesting. What a journey this is going to be.” —Jane Fonda
“Time is shortening. But every day that I challenge this cancer and survive is a victory for me.” —Ingrid Bergman
“Life’s better now. I wouldn’t do it all over again, though. It's funny how life works. Maybe it was meant to happen for many reasons because my life in many ways richer.” —Giuliana Rancic
“The cancer served a real purpose, making me a little bit more conscious of time.” — Gloria Steinem
“Yesterday is gone, tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today, let us begin.” —Mother Teresa
“My diagnosis flung me into despair until it hit me: I’m Alive”—Dana Dinerman
“I know how to put on my battle gear and I'm a fighter.” — Suzanne Somers
“If you have any doubt, go back again...because someone is in a white coat and using big medical instruments doesn’t necessarily mean they’re right.” —Kylie Minogue
“Many, many years ago, I was on a boat with my husband. I was swimming in the water. He came to the bow of the boat and he said, ‘Jules, I don’t want you to panic, but there’s a shark in the water, so you need to come back.’ And I was far away from the boat. And so, I just saw the ladder and I started swimming toward it, and I made the decision not to look around me at all. I was just going to stay looking at the ladder. And that very much applied to how I got through my cancer adventure—was sort of looking at the ladder. Just let’s get this done, let’s get there.” —Julia Louis-Dreyfus
“Having had cancer, one important thing to know is you’re the same person at the end. You’re stripped down to near zero. But most people come out the other end feeling more like themselves than ever before.” —Kylie Minogue
“Fight each round, take it on the chin. And never never never ever give in.” —Olivia Newton-John
“Cancer is really hard to go through and it’s really hard to watch someone you love go through, and I know because I have been on both sides of the equation.” —Cynthia Nixon
“Cancer is a word, not a sentence.” —John Diamon
“Some days there won’t be a song in your heart. Sing anyway.” —Emory Austin
You Might Also Like
