This Friday, I’ll have the honor of speaking in front of nearly 1,000 of genetic counselors at the annual National Society of Genetic Counselors conference in San Diego. My plenary session is entitled “5 Things Genetic Counselors Need to Know About Previvors.” I’m excited and honored to participate in this important event.

Ever since my book, Previvors, came out last year I’ve been speaking nationwide to women and men about their cancer risk. I usually address risk factors, red flags, and all the statistics related to BRCA mutations, surveillance options, and the latest in prophylactic surgeries. But the genetic counselors already know all of this. In fact, many of them helped me decipher this critical information when I was first writing my book.

That’s why I’m shifting gears.

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Today is National Previvor Day. This day is so important for the millions of men and women out there who are previvors: People who have no had cancer but have a high risk for developing it. And many of those previvors will be celebrating the long-overdue increased awareness that this day brings to their population.

But having a designated “previvor” day isn’t enough. The majority of the people in this country have no idea that today is National Previvor Day. They have never heard of FORCE or Bright Pink. They don’t even know the first thing about breast cancer risk.

We still have a lot of work to do.

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In 2010, the U.S House of Representatives declared the last week of September National Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer  (HBOC) Week and the last Wednesday of the month National Previvor Day.  Needless to say, this was a huge feat for the previvor community—men and women with a high risk for cancer finally felt like their voices were being heard. With heightened awareness comes funding and support which, in turn, can lead to more research and better options for the millions of people at risk.

And as we prepare to celebrate the second annual HBOC Week starting today and Previvor Day on September 28th, it’s amazing to look back and see how far we’ve come.

As always, FORCE, Bright Pink, and other organizations have done so much nationwide to help spread the word. And if every fundraiser, educational event, teleconference and newsletter enlightened just one more person, then each one was a success.

However, we sadly have a long way to go.

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This weekend I saw I Don’t Know How She Does It with a few of my girlfriends. (My husband happily stayed home—he’s the type of guy who tends to shy away from Sarah Jessica Parker movies.) Based on the 18% RottenTomatoes score it received, I was expecting the worst. And, as with most light comedies I’ve seen lately, it wasn’t actually all that bad. The plot was fluffy and the conclusion was ridiculous, but the cast was so likable that I actually smiled a few times (how can a movie with Greg Kinnear really be that terrible?)

As for the premise, well it’s about a woman trying to juggle a high-powered career and her family. And the script nailed all of the cliches—resentful stay-at-home moms who work out all day, the jealous male co-worker, the corporate climbing “I never want to have kids” female colleague. Sarah Jessica’s character, Kate,  tries to “do it all” by relying heavily on her husband and random babysitters.

But where I Don’t Know How She Does It failed miserably was the fact that, not once, did Kate turn to her friends.

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I just got back from the annual FORCE (Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered) conference in Orlando. This marks my fourth consecutive year attending the event, and it never ceases to amaze me how empowering the conference can be. Hundreds of women and men from all over the world join to learn about the latest news and research regarding hereditary breast and ovarian cancer. They come together to share in the comfort of others who completely understand what they are going through.

But that’s not enough.

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For the past six weeks, I’ve been speaking at various events throughout the country about my book, Previvors. And many people have asked me how I first decided to become a writer. Well, at my most recent book signing at Barnes & Noble in Boca Raton, part of my answer was there in person: A man by the name of Anthony Jaswinski.

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For those of you who read my last blog post, you were probably as shocked as I was about the sign I saw in my local grocery store. It was prominently displayed above pink teddy bears, pink water bottles and other pink merchadise, and it actually said “50% Off: Breast Cancer.”

I was appalled and decided I’d go back to the store the following day to ask the manager to either change the sign or remove it. Here’s how it went down:

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