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In 1992, First Coast News anchor Jeannie Blaylock founded a breast cancer awareness and early detection initiative that has saved countless lives.
Thirty-four years later, Buddy Check 12 would save her own.
"I’ve been reminding women to do self-exams and get their mammograms … I’ve interviewed hundreds of women who tell me, 'I’m alive because of Buddy Check,'" she said in an interview with the Times-Union.
Now she has joined their ranks.
The partnership with Baptist Health encourages women and men to perform monthly self-exams on the 12th of each month, have regular mammograms and remind their "buddy" to do the same. Blaylock and her mother, Beverly, are each other's "buddies." To date, the program has distributed about 1 million free kits with step-by-step instructions.
Earlier this year, Blaylock had a mammogram that showed a "suspicious area of white dots, calcifications grouped together. That can be a red flag for cancer," she said. She has since undergone a mastectomy and reconstructive surgeries — in between she was inducted into the Florida Broadcasters Hall of Fame — and will be monitored every six months.
"What if I had skipped that mammogram?"
Dr. Laila Samiian, her surgical oncologist at Baptist MD Anderson in Jacksonville, "told me I couldn't have caught it any earlier. If I had let it go undetected, I could have been facing life-threatening cancer." she said.
How has breast cancer awareness evolved?
When Blaylock founded the program, the topic was not an easy one to discuss. Now, breast cancer is at the forefront of public consciousness, with all sorts of awareness and patient support programs across the country. Not so in 1992.
"I’m grateful that we are all talking about breast cancer now. I remember when I first started Buddy Check, I had to fight to show a breast self-exam on TV," she said. "We were shy about even saying the word 'breast.'"
Blaylock cheered the "progress we’ve made in this battle with breast cancer over the last several decades," which includes the program winning a prestigious Peabody Award for public service and other honors. And the transparency she brought to the issue over the years remained in force when she was diagnosed.
"I believe, as a journalist, my job is to help people. That may sound simple. Actually, it’s powerful," she said. "Buddy Check has saved thousands of lives …. And now that I’ve been diagnosed myself, how can I not share? My consistent prayer is, 'God just use me. Use me to save more lives.'"
The good, bad and ugly of Jeannie Blaylock's cancer journey
On March 12, Blaylock made an on-air announcement about her diagnosis. The public response brought her to tears.
"What incredible support. Thousands of comments. And there’s a theme … 'God’s got this.' How true. I can see God’s help in every step I’m taking. I keep thanking people for their prayers because I can feel them," she said.
As her cancer fight progressed, Blaylock has shared the good, bad and ugly of her cancer journey. In blogs and videos on the station's website and on social media, she has talked about pre-op and back-to-work jitters, side affects such as nausea and fatigue, using a prosthesis and testing out different bras and dresses after her mastectomy, among other things.
She even bemoaned the daily emptying of the "dreaded" drains — the tubes inside the body connect to rubber pouches that collect fluid, which has to be measured daily.
"It’s not a pretty thing," she said. "Dumping out the fluid in the toilet turned my stomach, and so I learned to flush at the same time and just turn away and not look. This journey has its icky moments for sure. Am I shy about any of this? No. That wouldn’t help anyone."
'We owe it to our loved ones to try'
Supporters have sent her cancer-fighting tips, from easing nausea by putting peppermint oil on her belly button to waving an alcohol prep pad under her nose. "I think our community is packed with people who truly want to help," she said.
Her family — she and Bill Lyle, her husband of 25 years, have three children between them and two grandchildren — and First Coast News colleagues lead her fan club.
"My husband … has been right there with me the entire time. He runs to Tropical Smoothie each night to get me a Detox Island Green Smoothie, my way to get a bunch of vitamins with added whey protein," Blaylock said. "He keeps saying, 'You’re beautiful.'"
Blaylock steers clear of using the word remission, which she said people can associate with finishing chemotherapy and radiation and getting clear reports. She did not have those treatments. Samiian tells her, “You had cancer,” past tense, and she is now on a six-month rotation between MRIs and diagnostic mammograms.
July 9 was her first day back on air after her reconstructive surgery. It was a normal day at work, yet an abnormal day at work.
"I actually had knots in my stomach. I kept thinking, 'Jeannie, come on. You’ve anchored for 40-plus years,'" she said. "The answer is something many cancer patients could understand. I was totally immersed in the world of pathology reports and gauze and IVs. Then what a jolt to walk back into work. The two worlds are totally different."
Colleagues helped calm her jitters, as did fellow cancer survivor Bruce Hamilton, WJXT TV-4 morning news anchor. The two had been texting about their shared experiences and that day's text from Hamilton said: "You’ll shine as always. Not a doubt in my mind."
Blaylock is optimistic about the future.
"Any breast cancer patient will tell you, I think, that you just hope and pray you’re at a final step and finished with surgeries," she said.
She is empathetic for cancer patients who "do everything they can and still wind up with invasive breast cancer and a difficult fight," she said. And she remains vigilant about spreading the Buddy Check 12 word to keep breast cancer at bay for herself and everyone else.
"I’m directing my push now to women who ignore Buddy Check or skip their exams," she said. "We should all be trying to catch breast cancer early, whenever we can. It’s not always possible, but we owe it to our loved ones to try."
She welcomes questions or comments. Email her at [email protected].
Beth Reese Cravey has been a reporter for The Florida Times-Union for 45 years, currently specializing in nonprofits and health. She can be reached at [email protected].
(This story has been updated with additional story links.)
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: News anchor Jeannie Blaylock 'alive because of Buddy Check 12'
