Any efforts by the medical profession to curb patient autonomy deserve strict scrutiny lest we return to the unfortunate era of paternalism. And it will not be easy to effect these types of changes.

Please remember Oct. 13 throughout year. Those of us who suffer with Stage IV breast cancer want others to become aware of our disease. In so doing, we may not have to wait another 40 years before finding a cure.

Stage 4 cancer is a condition in which cancer has spread (metastasized) from its original location to other organs in the body.

If you, or someone you care about, ever experience a traumatic loss, never think or utter the words, "You have to let it go and move on." Time does not heal the wounds of trauma.

It used to be the C-word," Moskowitz says. "Nobody said they had cancer. Now it's the M-word nobody mentions. The word is metastatic."