Breast cancer can affect women of any age, and it's never too soon to begin self-exams. That's the message 18-year-old Arshawna Warren is spreading far and wide through her award-winning and life-saving outreach program, an effort inspired by her own incredible story of survival.
Arshawna says she was doing a routine self-exam 2 years ago just like her mother and scout leader Paula Warren, also a survivor of breast cancer, had taught her to. When she noticed something abnormal, she let her mother know immediately — she was diagnosed with breast cancer at the young age of 16. "It was probably the scariest thing I've ever gone through in my life," Arshawna tells WKYC-TV.
But it was Arshawna's early detection that saved her life. Now, at 18 years old, she's helping spread the word about self-exams and early detection through outreach and workshops. "I figured why not put a workshop on for young people about young people getting breast cancer or any type of cancer," she says. "It's not too early to start checking."
It's Arshawna's hard work in raising awareness to save the lives of other teen girls that's now won this life-long scout the highest possible honor — the Girl Scout Gold Award, presented to young women who "demonstrate extraordinary leadership through remarkable Take Action projects that have sustainable impact in their communities — and beyond."
Please SHARE Arshawna's powerful and important message with the women in your life!
