What began as a derogatory comment has become a well-known complimentary slogan for many women, including Madisonville resident Jennie "Regina" Williams.

Williams is one of thousands of breast cancer survivors who are proud they "fight like a girl."

"I considered myself a survivor from day one," said Williams, who was diagnosed with breast cancer at a routine mammogram screening on Oct. 29, 2010. "I don't feel like a victim. You've got to do what you have to do to survive. You take the treatments, you fight, and you move forward."

Williams, the assistant director of radiology at Sweetwater Hospital Association, now encourages all women to get their mammograms routinely.

"It's an important life saving tool," she said. "Dr. [Ross] Kurns told me if I had waited from October to December, that's only two months, my outcome would have been totally different. He told me he might not could have saved my life. That's 60 days."

See full story in the Sunday, Oct. 28, edition of The Advocate & Democrat.