With 56 Australians diagnosed with breast cancer every day, Breast Cancer Network Australia and Tetley Tea are encouraging people to use an everyday cuppa to start conversations that matter.
The call forms part of Tetley Tea’s A Life-Changing Cuppa campaign launched for Breast Cancer Awareness Month this October, building on a ritual already embedded in Australian life – putting the kettle on when someone needs to talk. Working together, Breast Cancer Network Australia and Tetley are using a range of approaches to start meaningful conversations and provide strength through shared experiences.
Breast Cancer Network Australia CEO Kirsten Pilatti said open conversations can help build awareness while providing important connection and support for people affected by breast cancer.
‘Breast cancer can affect people at different ages and in very different ways. It is so important that people feel able to speak about their health, share their experiences and seek medical advice when something does not feel right,’ Ms Pilatti said.
‘For someone navigating a new diagnosis, going through treatment or living with metastatic breast cancer being asked how they are really doing can also be incredibly meaningful. You do not need to have all the answers; sometimes starting the conversation and being there to listen is what matters most.’
Syed Zeeshan, Vice President and Country Head of Australia and New Zealand, Tetley, said ‘A Life-Changing Cuppa draws on tea’s longstanding role in bringing people together. Putting the kettle on is often what we do when someone needs to talk, when we want to check in, or simply when we take a moment together.’
Case Study: Jess Pearce
Melbourne based nurse and mum Jess Pearce knows firsthand how having an important conversation can help unearthing details that could matter.
After a close friend was diagnosed with breast cancer, Jess became more vigilant about her own breast health. When she noticed thickening in her breast in 2022, she underwent a mammogram and ultrasound but was reassured the results were clear and that she was ‘too young’ to be concerned.
Just 13 months later, at the age of 33, Jess was diagnosed with stage two breast cancer. For Jess, it was only after her breast cancer diagnosis that conversations within her family began to reveal a history of cancer on both sides. Genetic testing ultimately confirmed she carries a BRCA2 gene mutation inherited through her father’s family.
Jess’ experience reflects the message behind the campaign – having an open chat with those close around you, talking to relatives about their medical history and sharing what is known across generations can help people better understand their own health and raise relevant concerns with a medical professional.
‘I didn’t know about the BRCA2 genetic mutation until I was diagnosed,’ Jess said. ‘It is from my dad’s side. My pop, who we don’t really know, had died from cancer in 2020, which we only just found out about. My uncle and cousin on my dad’s side passed from cancer, also really young, and my nan on my dad’s side had breast cancer at 29.
‘Now others are finding out that they are carriers too, such as one of my brothers and one of my cousins.’
Jess’ treatment involved a double mastectomy and reconstruction and she continues to face treatments and procedures associated with her increased risk of other cancers. She said the physical and emotional impacts of breast cancer do not necessarily end when initial treatment is complete.
‘I get told “you’re lucky you’re young” or “you’re lucky they found it early”, but it’s not finished once treatment is finished,’ Jess said. ‘Yes, it’s amazing that I’m living, but there’s still a lot of healing to do even when you catch it early.’
Throughout her experience, Jess has turned to Breast Cancer Network Australia’s My Journey online tool and podcasts for practical information and emotional support. By sharing her story, she hopes to encourage others to talk more openly about breast cancer and take concerns seriously, regardless of their age.
Case Study: Veronica Wong
It was late March 2018. Veronica had begun pondering how an introvert like her might, for a change, celebrate a milestone birthday. Instead, Veronica’s 50th year became a battle to save her life.
‘It’s hard to forget the day one is diagnosed. I’d woken up two consecutive days with discomfort in my left armpit. It wasn’t painful, but it was new. I was lucky to get a doctor’s appointment quickly. I went to the clinic thinking and hoping it’d be benign, so I didn’t insist on my husband’s company though I briefed him on my plans. Suddenly, my wonderful husband appeared out of nowhere and I was so grateful. I was going to really need him as the doctor finally called me into her office. We sat down and I grabbed his hand tightly.
‘”I’m sorry, you’ve got breast cancer,’ the doctor said.
Whilst Veronica couldn’t control the cancer or the treatments, Veronica said she focused on what she could control.
‘Staying busy and distracted with work was paramount. It was my primary coping mechanism and I hoped, my children’s comfort to see Mummy living relatively normally. Deliberately embracing my hair loss during chemo, shaving it and not hiding, was liberating and empowering.
‘Not hiding my hair loss also meant I was a walking billboard that something was different, “wrong” even. It became the opener for conversations I knew were uncomfortable for many to hear, though they became increasingly comfortable for me to talk about.
‘Why? Because 1 in 7 women are diagnosed with breast cancer (and 1 in 600 men too), and I didn’t know and now I had become one of them.’
As part of its ongoing partnership with Breast Cancer Network Australia, Tetley Tea will donate five cents from every pink pack sold in Australia to help fund information, resources and support for people affected by breast cancer.
For more information or to donate to Breast Cancer Network Australia, visit https://www.tetley.com.au/
Marking Breast Cancer Awareness Month with A Life-Changing Cuppa, Breast Cancer Network Australia are also celebrating the release of ‘The Whole Story’, a new short film starring Brenna Harding, inspired by lived experience that challenges the simplified story of breast cancer and reveals some of the realities that survival statistics don’t show.
For more information, visit www.bcna.org.au
