Sandra Lee 'my Breast Cancer Journey'

EXCLUSIVE People EXCLUSIVE

An unfamiliar number lit up on Sandra Lee’s phone while she was in a cab on her way to dinner with a friend in Manhattan on March 27. It was her doctor, with biopsy results following a routine mammogram that showed a large area of calcification in her right breast. “He said, ‘I want you to know that what we took out of you was malignant,’ ” she recalls. The minute she arrived at the restaurant, the shaken Lee called her partner of 10 years, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. “I was shocked and concerned,” he says. “I wanted to protect and shield her, but the best I could do in that moment was reassure her that everything would be okay.” He promptly, and uncharacteristically, cleared his schedule and booked a trip for the couple to Turks and Caicos. “I don’t think I’ve left for more than a couple of nights since becoming governor,” he says, “but I knew Sandy needed a break, and we needed to be in a place that allowed us to focus on her.” At the beach, they came up with a plan to handle the form of the disease she has: DCIS (ductal carcinoma in situ), a common noninvasive cancer contained within the milk ducts that can become invasive over time if left untreated. Treatment is normally a lumpectomy followed by radiation, or a mastectomy. Cure rates are high. “My doctor called me a poster girl for mammography,” says Lee, 48, who is glad she didn’t wait until age 50 to get a mammogram, as some new guidelines recommend.

The next month was a swirl of contradictions—unnerving doctor’s appointments and cheerful television appearances. She tested negative for BRCA1 and BRCA2, genes that increase the risk of breast and ovarian cancer. She consulted breast surgeons and plastic surgeons specializing in reconstruction while weighing her options. At the same time, she went on with her professional life as a celebrity chef, taping appearances on The Wendy Williams Show, Steve Harvey and Good Morning America promoting her new line of margaritas, Cocktail Time. She was also honored at a gala by the Food Bank in New York City and, while in L.A. on business, had enough energy to rescue a baby seal that she found on the beach. “I compartmentalize,” she says. “When I go to sleep at night, that’s the only time I have to think about what’s going on. That’s when I cry. But it’s been very hard to be on a TV tour and talk about entertaining and enjoying life. I feel so disingenuous. I’ve been hiding this for six weeks.”

Inspired by Robin Roberts, with whom she sat down to discuss her journey, Lee has decided to go public with her story. She is opting for a double mastectomy followed by reconstruction, which she scheduled for this week. If all goes well, she will need no further treatment. “I want this over and done with,” she says. “I could choose to have a lumpectomy and do radiation, but it is more important for me to know I’m never going to have to do this again.” Cuomo intends to be in the operating room. “This is about her feeling secure and loved,” he says. “I plan on being the last person she sees before she goes to sleep and the first one when she awakes.”

As she recovers, Lee aims to make changes in her life. “My sister Kimber is trying to get me to do yoga,” she says. “De-stressing would be nice. I have not been as dedicated to working out or to thinking about where the food I eat comes from,” adds Lee, who made her name with her Semi-Homemade philosophy, which mixes fresh ingredients with store-bought ones. “I’m really not worried about cake mixes or my Paul Newman’s salad dressing,” she says. “I’m worried about the hormones in beef, the plastic in water bottles and the pesticides in our vegetables and fruit. But I will have more local-grown messages.” Lee’s career as a chef stems from her hardscrabble childhood, during which she helped raise her four siblings, at times on food stamps. “I always try to flip something negative into something positive,” she says. Now she has a new focus: “I want to advocate for early detection. Put down this magazine and schedule a mammogram.”

Why a Double Mastectomy?

After consulting with several doctors, Lee made her choice because, she says, a lumpectomy would require weeks of radiation and “I don’t want that in my body.” A noted surgeon in the field who generally recommends a double mastectomy for women with cancer in both breasts and/or women who are genetically predisposed to getting breast cancer respects her decision. More women with cancer in one breast are electing a double mastectomy for personal reasons, thanks in large part to improvements in reconstructive surgery. These rates have increased from 1.9 percent in 1998 to 11.2 percent in 2011.

Says the surgeon:

• Removing and reconstructing both breasts gives a more symmetric cosmetic outcome. Especially with nipple-saving surgery, which Lee intends to have, the results are “masterful.”

• No future mammograms, ultrasounds or breast MRIs are required, the surgeon says.

• It provides peace of mind. “Women tend to overestimate their risk of getting cancer in the other breast,” says the surgeon. “But that risk does increase with age.”

Related Articles