The history of The Young Ones.
The Young One’s was formed in November 1999 when five young women, who had all been diagnosed with breast cancer before they were forty-five, got together to have dinner in a restaurant in Lygon Street.
Tanya Wilson, who is the founding member and Patron of The Young One’s, had become an active member of Breast Cancer Network Australia, the Breast Cancer Action Group and the Fenceliner’s (breast cancer adventure group) but still couldn’t find the support and contact that she craved from women her own age. Most of the women that she met through breast cancer groups were over fifty.
Diagnosed at only thirty-six, Tanya was a single mother with two young children to care for, working part time to support her family and an only child, which meant that she had no siblings to call on for help.
Tanya needed some one to talk to that knew what having a mastectomy and being single was like. Someone who could share their tips on how to get through chemically induced menopause at age thirty-six and the side effects that came with it. How to cope with fatigue when you have kids that rely on you to do things for them and the many other issues that younger women have to deal with, that older women don’t.
When she finally did meet some young women who had experienced breast cancer, it was suggested that they get together and have dinner. These women found comfort in being able to talk openly to someone who was in a similar situation as themselves, some one that understood their fears, concerns and hopes for the future after having had breast cancer.
It was great for them to be able to share their knowledge and tips on how to cope with treatments, surgery, sexuality, infertility and hair loss. They talked about helpful ideas on how to manage with work, kids, dating and household duties while dealing with the side effects from treatment. They discussed research, trials, advocacy, alternative/ complementary treatments, reconstruction, genetics and the hope for a cure for cancer.
They also found that the dinners were a great place to talk about how they were coping emotionally and the strain that their having cancer put on their families financially, physically and mentally. It was also a place where they could talk about the guilt they felt for sending their loved one’s lives into chaos.
Word spread quickly through the breast cancer grapevine that there was a group of young women meeting regularly and it wasn’t long before they started getting calls from other young women who wanted to join them. So they agreed to get together every six weeks and found Café’ CoCo, where they still meet.
Six weekly dinners started in the small private room in the rear of the café and quickly progressed to monthly meetings in the large private area upstairs. Women wanted to plan ahead for baby sitters and transport, so yearly dates were distributed amongst members of the group and a name was thought up to call themselves.
A decision was made to have a cut off age of forty-five for the group simply because if they didn’t, one day members would be in their fifty’s and newly diagnosed young women would have no group to turn to that catered specifically for their needs. Membership is free and open to all young women, no matter what stage of breast cancer they are at.
As The Young Ones numbers grew they found that even though some members couldn’t always make it to meetings because of distance, commitments or health reasons, they still wanted to be kept informed of what was happening with the group, so a monthly newsletter was started.
Many members formed friendships, so social events were planned where partners and family could join in, to help them understand what the group offered to the people that they cared about. Workshops, forums, conferences and projects were also organised to give young women access to the latest information available on breast cancer, so that they could make informed decisions about their treatment choices.
The Young Ones was self funded for the first couple of years and as numbers grew so did the costs associated with keeping the group going. Attendees gave a gold coin donation at meetings which helped, but the rest of the costs were covered by Tanya who was finding it more difficult each month. A donation was received from a very generous lady, Lyn Swinburne, along with some contact details for Women in Super, who donated enough to keep the group going until they organised their first fund raising event. This saved the group from folding.
With time and experience The Young Ones have learned how to stay on top of costs. Over the years they have acquired computer equipment, set up a website, a direct mobile phone number, information leaflets and a data base. Numbers have grown to over one hundred and fifty Victoria wide, with the newsletter also being distributed to medical professionals, other support groups and interstate women who enjoy reading about what the girls are up to.
To say “The Young Ones has made a difference to the breast cancer community” would be an understatement. Many members now sit as consumer representatives, present at conferences, participate in trials, initiate projects, write books, produce plays and have started more support groups. These things alone are a great achievement for young women with breast cancer, as our voices and needs are now heard Australia wide. But I still feel that our greatest achievement is being able to provide someone to turn to when a young woman with breast cancer feels that her life is at its bleakest. This was the sole reason that The Young Ones was formed and the driving thought behind its success.
Tanya Wilson
