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When Reinis Smith was told she carried the BRCA 1 gene, she knew exactly what she had to do. Although she had never been diagnosed with cancer, she underwent a bilateral mastectomy and a hysterectomy.
“Women with the BRCA 1 gene have an 80-90 percent chance of developing breast cancer or ovarian cancer by the time they turn 50,” says Reinis. “I had a choice, I could worry constantly about what might happen and be in and out of the doctor’s office every six months, or I could be proactive.”
Reinis chose to be proactive. “I have a bigger fear of doing chemo than the surgery.”
Reinis, a surgical intensive care nurse at Wesley Medical Center, has seen her share of cancer on the job and in her own family. She is very familiar with the effects cancer treatment can have on the body and the spirit. But it was her own family history that prompted her to get tested. Her aunt, her grandmother and her mother all died of cancer. Her mother died when she was still in high school; Reinis and her brother Mike were then raised by her older sister, Annette.
“When I was 23, I was in college and having a blast. One day I’m driving in my car and I realize I’m the same age my sister was when my brother and I went to live with her; she had two small children of her own and was grieving the loss of a son. That was amazing to me. I really didn’t fully appreciate what all she went through until then.”
But it was her younger sister Jodi who would have the greatest impact on Reinis’ future.
When Jodi was diagnosed with breast cancer, it was discovered that she carried the BRCA 1 gene. Her husband was serving his country overseas at the time. He was granted a special leave and came home long enough to organize a support team of family and friends for his wife, before deploying again.
“He had baby sitters and meals all lined up,” says Reinis. “He knew he couldn’t be here for her, but he did what he could to make sure she didn’t go through it alone.”
In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Lifetime channel did a 2-minute segment about Jodi and the real army wives in her neighborhood. The piece is scheduled to appear during Army Wives on Sunday, October 4th. She hopes to raise awareness in all the women watching, just as she inspired her siblings to get tested for the BRCA 1 gene.
“They don’t do gene testing randomly,” explains Reinis. “In fact there’s only one place in the country that does it, and you have to prove causation before they will even consider your application.” Reinis and her siblings documented their family history until there was no doubt in anyone’s mind they had a right to be concerned.
Reinis is just one in a family of eight children. Her sister Karen also tested positive for the BRCA 1 gene. She has had ovarian cancer and a tumor was discovered when they performed her mastectomies. Annette and Renee do not carry the gene, but their brother Lance does. Reinis’ two other brothers, Scott and Mike have not been tested. Although Lance is less likely to have breast cancer, he is still at risk. More importantly, just like his sisters, he has a 50 percent chance of passing it on to his daughters.
“My girls are still too young to be tested,” says Reinis. “They don’t advise the test until they’re in their twenties. And then it will be up to them whether or not they want to know.”
Once she was tested, Reinis knew for her it wasn’t a matter of if she would have cancer, but when. Fortunately, her husband backed her decision 100 percent. He had also lost his mother to breast cancer at an early age and did not want his children to suffer the same fate. Today, three years after having undergone major surgery and reconstruction, Reinis is looking forward to a long and happy life. “I’m still at risk,” she says. “But now my chances of having cancer are the same as the rest of the general population.”
Those are odds she can live with.
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