This holiday season, BC Women’s Health Foundation is celebrating transformative moments created by the world-class care that patients across all stages of life have experienced at BC Women’s Hospital + Health Centre. These stories embody the strength, resilience and hope across a diverse spectrum of experiences that were shaped at BC Women’s.
“The moment I knew my medically-induced menopause was finally being understood.”
– Irene Ingel, BC Women’s employee and patient
At age 34, just 18 months after the birth of her second child, Irene Ingel, Birthing Program Manager at BC Women’s Hospital + Health Centre (BCWH), was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. Within a month, she had a double mastectomy, and three weeks later began chemotherapy. “The cancer was in several of my lymph nodes, and was 100 per cent estrogen positive,” Irene recounts. She opted to protect herself further with an oophorectomy, removal of her ovaries.
The surgeries and treatments plunged Irene into medically-induced menopause, which can arrive more suddenly and intensely than natural menopause. Irene faced extreme hot flashes, night sweats and mood swings, along with many other physical and emotional challenges that were profound, deeply personal and debilitating for the young mother.
Unfortunately, for Irene and many other women dealing with complex menopause symptoms, there has been no centre of support in the healthcare system in BC – until the announcement of a new program to support women through the challenges of menopause and midlife health, the upcoming BCWH Menopause + Midlife Women’s Health Program (MMHP).
Irene is keenly aware of how urgent it is to have the support of this new program for women going through these impactful life changes. “I had to navigate these past three years on my own, and after what I’ve experienced, I am so passionate about the new BCH Menopause + Midlife Women’s Health Program and what it will offer women in this stage of life.” MMHP will provide treatments and programs to mitigate symptoms, expert medical advice, personalized exercise and nutrition support, and more.
“I feel like this program could benefit not just the patients, but also the providers,” Irene continues. “We really need people who are close to the science, the evidence base, to help disseminate information. And creating a space for people to connect with each other and to talk through what they’re going through would be really helpful for patients who otherwise can feel very isolated. This new program will really support women through this very complex journey and greatly benefit their quality of life.”
Join us in our mission to create a healthier future and more life-changing moments for women, newborns and families in BC. Please donate now to BC Women’s Health Foundation’s BC Women’s Moments campaign, supporting the purchase of essential ultrasound technology for every stage of women’s lives.
