Breast Cancer Awareness Month Spotlight On: Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy

BuzzSugar — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 14:38:05 PDT

As today is the final day of October, I'm wrapping up my Breast Cancer Awareness series with a spotlight on the Lifetime television movie Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy. Based on the Geralyn Lucas' 2004 memoir by the same name, the movie stars Sarah Chalke as the 27-year-old Manhattan-dwelling Lucas who finds herself living "the life" with a dream job and dreamier doctor husband - and a lump in her breast.

She goes through a mastectomy and the subsequent chemotherapy, all the while struggling to maintain a sense of confidence and femininity. Her high-end New York lifestyle, loving family, understanding boss and supportive friends all help her through the experience, but nothing can truly make her feel better about being unusually young for a breast cancer patient. She fiercely insists on wearing red lipstick whenever she can, her "war paint" in the battle against the disease.

I'm a huge Sarah Chalke fan, and while the story is, in true Lifetime fashion, slightly glossy and vanilla, Chalke does a magnificent job portraying the defiantly feminine Lucas. Her determination to live a beautiful life in the midst of such an ugly experience is inspiring. The movie is currently available on iTunes for $4.