In a powerful op-ed for Elle magazine, singer Normani has opened up about her mother being diagnosed with breast cancer for a second time. The artist was just five years old when her mother, Andrea Hamilton, was first diagnosed. Hamilton was cancer-free for 19 years but in 2020, she received news that the cancer had returned.
The American Cancer Society has reported that even though that Black and white women are diagnosed with the disease at similar rates, Black women are 40 percent more likely to die from it. Normani’s mother is again cancer-free.
The artist, who is an American Cancer Society ambassador, wrote about the experience in detail:
“I was in Los Angeles when I found out my mom had been diagnosed with breast cancer again. My family was back in Houston. Three weeks earlier, when I was visiting my mom at home, she’d fallen into my arms expressing how scared she was. She had a gut feeling about the results. I felt incredibly helpless because I wasn’t able to cure her. I could not change the circumstances. I also had to cope alone, thousands of miles away from my family.”
Normani also shared the importance of regular self-exams and doctor visits:
“I watched my mother find her own lumps both times she had breast cancer. She taught me the importance of looking out for changes in your breasts and educated me on what mammograms were at an early ageI also encourage anyone who has a family member with cancer to see that your family talks to a doctor about genetic testing. We have taken these measures as a family. Knowledge is power, so whatever you don’t know, don’t be afraid to ask.”
Ultimately, this difficult journey has also taught the star to make memories now and just live in the moment. “The things that scared me before no longer do,” she stated.