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PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — October marks the beginning of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. There are now more breast cancer survivors in the U.S. than ever, with four million and counting.<\/p>\n
It’s all about early detection and better treatments aiming to save even more lives.<\/p>\n
The American Cancer Society is reminding women to grab your girls. That’s about holding friends and family accountable for mammograms. It’s a message being shared by two special sisters.<\/p>\n
Side by side, these South Jersey sisters have stepped through the ordeal of breast cancer together.<\/p>\n
“I was scared, I was really scared,” Charmella Roark said.<\/p>\n
Charmella Roark was diagnosed last summer, four years after her sister, Kiki.<\/p>\n
“I saw three doctors and they told me it was nothing,” Kiki Roark said.<\/p>\n
She was just 37 at the time with a lump in her breast and in spite of what doctors said, she insisted on a mammogram.<\/p>\n
“You have to be an advocate. Yes, we trust doctors. Yes, we listen to doctors, but listen to your body. I say this all the time,” Kiki Roark said.<\/p>\n
Through different treatments, the sisters helped each other navigate the physical and emotional rollercoaster of breast cancer.<\/p>\n
Now they’re happy to be part of the American Cancer Society’s “Grab Your Girls” campaign, encouraging women to hold each other accountable for screenings.<\/p>\n “It’s bringing someone that you love and you care about, holding her hands through something that could be scary,” Charmella Roark said.<\/p>\n “Tell your friends, tell your family, everyone — it’s so important to get these mammograms,” Kiki Roark said.<\/p>\n Doctors say mammograms are still the best way to find breast cancer early, the American Cancer Society said they should start at age 45.\u00a0<\/p>\n “We know outcomes are so much better when cancers are detected earlier,” Karen Knudsen with the American Cancer Society said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Knudsen said there’s still work to do, however.<\/p>\n “A combination of early detection as well as improved treatments have helped us reduce the breast cancer rate by 43% percent,” she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n For the Roark sisters, it’s now about helping other women and staying healthy. They’ll be out here at Cooper River Park for the annual Making Strides Walk.<\/p>\n “All walks of life here to celebrate life,” Charmella Roark said.\u00a0<\/p>\n The 25th Annual Making Strides of Greater Philadelphia will take place at Cooper River Park Jack Curtis Stadium on Sunday, Oct. 15 at 8:30 a.m.<\/p>\n The American Cancer Society has more information about how to get a cancer screening.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n