By NATALIE GALLENTI
SABRINA Moore is not daunted by the word cancer.
The Hillside resident was diagnosed with cervical cancer when she was only 18 years old.
She has also had family and friends who have undergone their own battles with the often deadly disease – and yet she remains a positive person.
However Sabrina, now 28, does admit that she was shocked when she was first given the diagnosis after a routine pap test.
She recalls the phone call from her doctor asking her to visit him immediately and then the inevitable trip to the gynaecologist followed by invasive surgery.
Within a week the teenager had been diagnosed with cancer and was in and out of the hospital. “I’m a very black and white person… I just wanted them to do what they had to do,” Sabrina told Star.
The former nurse said she then spent years undergoing frequent pap tests until she got the all-clear.
Now the mother-of-two is helping to raise awareness of the disease and the importance of having regular pap tests by hosting a Girl’s Night In with a group of her girlfriends.
Sabrina said the evening will be all about fun and girls getting together to raise money for a most worthy cause.
She is also encouraging women to put aside the discomfort that comes with the test and think of their health first.
“The discomfort from that (the pap test) is nothing compared to the discomfort of surgery.
“A lot of us who are older should be more aware.”
She urged women to have a breast examination at the same time as a pap test and never be fooled into thinking they’re too young to get cancer.
“Some people think they’re too young to get these things checked out, but they’re not.”
To get information on how to host a Girl’s Night In or how to make a donation visit www.pinkribbonday.com.au/host-your-own-girls-night
