Black Celebs You Probably Don’t Know Battled Breast Cancer - Page 2

October as many of you know is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and black women (and even, black men) are underserved when it comes to awareness and treatment of the disease. MadameNoire is no stranger to producing slideshows about women who survived and black celebrities who fought the disease. The best way to continue enlightening the black community is to highlight 10 more black celebrities and public figures who you probably didn’t know battled, survived and in some cases lost their lives to breast cancer.

Edna Campbell, Basketball Player

Campbell’s breast cancer fight is truly inspirational. Not only did she fight and win, but she continued to play basketball despite the disease. And she didn’t stop there. Campbell authored, “The Breast Cancer Recovery Manual” highlighting her personal feat and the recovery process.

Fannie Lou Hamer, Civil Rights Activist

She’s the woman who was sick and tired of being sick and tired. Hamer not only fought for our civil rights, she also endured a battle with breast cancer. Her significance as a civil rights leader came as an organizer of the Mississippi Freedom Summer for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. Unfortunately, she became sick with complications from diabetes, heart problems and breast cancer. We lost Hamer to heart tension in 1977.

Shirley Horn, Jazz Singer/Pianist

Horn is a jazz great who has collaborated with the likes of Miles Davis and producers like Quincy Jones. She would not succumb to breast cancer as she would not succumb to popular music. But unfortunately, we lost her to diabetes in 2005.

Danitra Vance, Comedian/Actress

This funny lady is best known as a cast member of Saturday Night Live in the 11th season. Unfortunately after a few movie roles, Vance’s breast cancer recurred in 1993 and she passed away in 1994. Before she did, she produced a skit, “The Radical Girl’s Guide to Radical Mastectomy.”

Marsha Hunt, Singer/Novelist

Hunt is known for moving to London, and beginning a career as a singer and model. After meeting Mick Jagger, they began a relationship and had a child. After that, Hunt took to writing. But in 2004, she was diagnosed with the cancer. She had a complete mastectomy in Ireland. She went on to release another novel, “Undefeated” about her battle with the cancer.

Shirley Graham Du Bois, Author and Playwright

Graham Du Bois, like her husband W.E.B Du Bois, wrote about race, but for children educational purposes as well. She married Du Bois in the early 1950s. After moving to Ghana and then Egypt, she died from complications with breast cancer in China.

Patricia Roberts Harris, Politician/Educator

Harris worked with President Jimmy Carter as the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and then, the Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare. The first black woman to do so. But unfortunately, Harris’ own health faded in the 1980s after being diagnosed and passing away from her battle with breast cancer. In her time, she had many political career firsts for women of color and later taught at George Washington University’s National Law Center.

Edward Brooke, Politician

You all probably already know about Richard Roundtree’s breast cancer survival, but he’s not the only man to have been diagnosed.  Brooke, a Republican who elected the first black person to the United States Senate (Massachusetts), was diagnosed with the breast cancer in the early 2000s and has since raised awareness for men.

Ernie Green, Football Player

And the list goes on with men being diagnosed with breast cancer. Green was also diagnosed with breast cancer in the 2000s, after having a successful football player. Breast cancer ran in his family, as two sisters battled the disease. Green has raised awareness about the disease and its impact not only on women, but men as well.