Breast cancer awareness month is something that Oscar De La Hoya is very passionate about because his mother battled with the terrible disease. He helped open The Cecilia Gonzalez De La Hoya Cancer Center is Los Angeles back in 2000, a state of the art facility dedicated to cancer treatment and now he’s teamed up with the Susan G. Komen’s More Than Pink Initiative that encourages people to take action to eliminate any more cancer deaths.
Latina caught up with the boxer in an interview where he talks about his mother’s battle with cancer. “It definitely taught me that my mother was a lot stronger than I was at any given day, whether it was inside the ring or outside the ring,” he says. De La Hoya was only 16 when his mother informed him that she had cancer, and she died when she was 39. “Here you have a woman who is too proud to go to the hospital and get treatments, or to get mammograms because she didn’t want to leave the household and make us worry,” he says.
Here is De La Hoya talking about how difficult the death of his mother was:
Unfortunately, that is the case for many moms, who put their children and families first before their own health. “She was the toughest person that I will ever know—she taught me courage, to stand up for myself, and confidence.”
It was an extremely difficult time for De La Hoya because his mom died when he was just a teen. Unfortunately, she didn’t get the treatment she needed. “A woman gives herself less chances to win this fight against breast cancer if she doesn’t prepare herself, and the preparation is going to get the check-ups and going to get the mammograms,” he says.
The American Cancer Society recommends yearly screening mammograms starting at the age of 45, even though the U.S. Preventative Service Task Force recommends them between the ages of 50 and 74, and every 2 years. Many doctors recommend women get them as early as their 30’s. “My number one message to women is that you take care of others all your life, it is time to take care of yourself,” says De La Hoya.
He also encourages women to get exercising. “Right from the first day, you are going to feel empowered, you are going to feel strong and confident. You’re just going to feel good about yourself. But the second day when you wake up in the morning you are going to feel sore; you are going to feel discouraged. Continue the fight, continue through that soreness, and continue through the pain because there is nothing sweeter than continuing that training for your body. Once you get over that hump, you are home free. After that you’ll feel like a superwoman.”
Great advice, indeed, but more importantly don’t forget to get a mammogram ladies!