Shirley Temple Made It Easier to Talk About Having Breast Cancer

If a former film star held a press conference today about having breast cancer, she would hardly make history by doing so. Unless she were exceptionally young or famous for her gorgeous body, a celebrity’s cancer announcement might receive less attention, in itself, than scrutiny over her treatment decisions. Parade lists dozens of famous individuals who have “come out” with a breast cancer diagnosis.

Shirley Temple in 1944 (Wikimedia image)
Shirley Temple in 1944 (Wikimedia image)

Yesterday, Shirley Temple Black died at the age of 85 years. In the fall of 1972, the former actress had a mastectomy to remove a tumor from her left breast. She was 44 years old. Within days after surgery at Stanford Hospital in San Francisco, she spoke to the media about her condition. She advised other women not to be afraid to see a doctor if they noticed a breast lump. Newspapers around the country reported on her surgery, and advice. “There is almost certain recovery from this form of cancer if it is caught early enough,” she said. Her intention was to encourage other women to not be afraid of seeking care for breast cancer.

In that era, her message was one of empowerment. In the early 1970s, many women were terrified of having a malignancy. If they felt a breast lump, they might wait months or years, until it grew through to the skin, eroding it, or spread to other body parts, eventually causing pain or death. The message of early detection, which some experts now question, was considered an imperative by almost all authorities – surgeons, medical oncologists and public health experts.

I must admit, I’ve never been a fan of Shirley Temple’s “baby burlesk” style of cuteness, curls and twirls. I acknowledge what historians say, that as a girl she delivered smiles and good cheer when she appeared in Depression-era films. Some of her most famous scenes, like singing “On the Good Ship Lollipop” in Bright Eyes, or dancing with Mr. Bojangles (Bill Robinson) in The Little Colonel, do bear a certain charm, or interest, through time.

Shirley Jane Temple was born on April 23, 1928. She retired from acting at 22 years, around the time she married Charles Alden Black. In the 1950s she entered the political realm, raising money for the Republican Party. In the 1960s, she conveyed support for the war in Vietnam. While Nixon was President, she served as a delegate to the United Nations and ambassador to Ghana. She held positions in the administration of Gerald Ford and, later, under George H. W. Bush as ambassador to Czechoslovakia. She was, most certainly, a woman with whom I might have had some serious disagreements at a dinner table.

What I choose to remember about Shirley Temple is that she lived for 41 years after having a mastectomy for breast cancer in 1972. She spoke openly about her medical condition, and encouraged other women to seek medical care if they noticed a lump. In doing so, she may have saved more than a few lives. And she made it easier for us, today, to talk about breast cancer, options, and long-term effects of treatment.

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