December 11, 2012
Reporting and News Writing
Professor Tierney
Spotlight on Liza Talusan, the Director of Intercultural Affairs
When you are faced with a challenging situation in your life, you may wonder why such a daunting adversity would happen to you. Then you may get discouraged and wouldn’t know where to even begin in order to overcome the situation. If you ever find yourself in this kind of situation, remember, as some people say: God challenges you only so much that you can handle.
Liza Talusan is the Director of Intercultural Affairs at Stonehill. Talusan is a mother of three, a wife, an educator, a feminist, an activist, and a leader like many of her other colleagues at Stonehill. The only difference between her and any other colleague is that Talusan is a previvor: a survivor of a predisposition to cancer.
Talusan’s story began in 2006 when one of her older sisters, Mary Talusan, was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 36. Following the diagnosis, Mary’s genetic test revealed that the cause of her cancer was a mutation in the BRCA-1 gene—a type of DNA repairing gene in human breast cells. A mutation in this gene is linked to hereditary breast and ovarian cancers.
Then, it was a chain reaction. Grace Talusan, Talusan’s other sister, also tested positive for the BRCA-1 mutation; all of her paternal cousins tested positive, and finally, Liza tested positive. Clearly, it was a genetic mutation that spread in the family. “A BRCA gene mutation means that I have approximately a 90% chance of developing breast cancer and a 60% chance of developing ovarian cancer,” Talusan said.
Talusan’s main concern was her age. In her family, everyone who tested positive for the mutation had developed breast cancer or precancerous cells between ages 36 and 38. As Talusan approached that age range, she said she felt like she had “a ticking time bomb” inside her body. She was afraid, mad, anxious, and emotional. “Would you ever just chop off your hand because you think one day you might get it caught in a car door?” Talusan asked.
Yet, this is just a part of her story, the tip of the ice berg.
Previously in 2005, her oldest daughter, Joli Vega, was diagnosed with retinoblastoma—a cancer of the eye—at age two and had to get an eye removed along with intensive rounds of chemotherapy. Furthermore, a genetic test showed positive result for a genetic disease called Von Hippel-Lindau disease, which Talusan also tested positive for it soon after. “VHL syndrome is also a genetic mutation, which does not shut off tumor growth in the spine, the kidneys, and the retina,” Talusan said.
Finally, in January of 2010 when Talusan was 35, she decided to have a mastectomy, completely removing her breast tissue, following in the footsteps of her two sisters. “It was a difficult decision for Liza, but she was very determined,” said Office Manager of Intercultural Affairs Janice McGovern, who has worked closely with Talusan for 4 years.
Two years after her surgery, Talusan says she feels entirely comfortable with the change in her body. The removal of her breast tissues drastically lowered her risk of developing breast cancer to 1%. However, she still faces the 60% possibility of developing ovarian cancer every day.
“Ovarian cancer is a little bit different,” Talusan stated. Unlike a mastectomy, the removal of an ovary increases the risk of osteoporosis due to depletion in calcium deposits in bones and results in other detrimental hormone side-effects such as mood-swings, hot flashes, cessation of menses, and anxiety. These risks are why Talusan is waiting for the perfect moment to remove her ovary. “I will eventually remove it,” Talusan shared.
Despite her bumpy journey of her life, Talusan, a second generation Filipina American is celebrating her 5th year as the Director of Intercultural Affairs this year. Despite her health issues, Talusan refuses to let them interfere with her work. Since her arrival at Stonehill, the college has greatly transformed in raising diversity-related awareness across campus. “Our primary goal has been to make students to feel they are part of the community,” McGovern said.
Programs like, the African, Latino, Asian, Native American-Allies (ALANA-A) Brothers and Sisters, established by the Office of Intercultural Affairs have especially contributed to increasing the number of open-minded and accepting leaders who tirelessly challenge themselves to make Stonehill a safer campus.
Osasu Igbinedion, an ALANA-A Brothers and Sisters leader, describes the program as, “a circle of strong, educated men and women who come together to learn about the power of an educated mind. We have open discussions within ourselves and the Stonehill campus regarding matters related to social justice, women’s empowerment, white privilege, race, and more.”
Each year, the competitiveness surges for the application process of the leadership program as more and more students apply in hopes of bringing change to Stonehill. Despite the work of having to read the application and interview students, Talusan exudes nothing but excitement. “A few years ago, we were accepting everybody. However, it is very competitive now, and I like it. More application means more candidates to make it a stronger program,” Talusan declared.
With the risk of ovarian cancer still lingering in the back of her mind, Talusan takes a day off from work and visits her oncologist in Boston to get her ovary checked every six months.
Already having suffered from dealing with so many cancers in thus far her life, Talusan lives with the possibility of suffering even more. Despite this possibility, Talusan is nothing but optimistic about her situation. “Cancers have made us stronger,” Talusan said. She states that cancer has brought her family closer than ever before and has forced her family to break the challenging barrier that every Asian family has: verbally expressing their love for each other.
“What surprises me the most is that my dad and I have been saying ‘I love you’ to each other every time we see each other. Coming from an Asian family where there isn’t a lot of ‘I love yous’ and hugs culturally, so it is a huge change. I was raised by an Asian dad who was pretty distanced for most of my life. It is not his fault, but that’s just how he was raised by his parents, like other typical Asian parents,” Talusan stated.
Furthermore, Talusan describes her daughter, cancer survivor Joli as a mature, smart, sensitive, and compassionate 9-year-old girl, very unlike typical kids at her age. “For me as her parent, it was the greatest thing that has happened to me because of the life lessons from it and how it shaped our family structure and her character as my daughter,” Talusan said.
Talusan shares that the next step of her life is testing Jada and Evan, her other children, for possibly having the BRCA-1 gene mutation or Von Hippel-Lindau disease. She says that the odds of Jada and Evan having a BRCA-1 gene mutation are 50:50.
It is clear that Talusan has a defined set of plans. She knows her future strategies and prepares well to overcome challenges. It is her strong, determined, and driven personality that inspires people the most.
“Liza has always been my go-to role model when I am faced with a challenge or struggle. Her strength in everything she tackles in life is inspirational, and I am so lucky to have her as a role model,” ALANA–A Brothers and Sisters Leader Alanna Melendez said.
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