2000 Cancer

Viki Battles Breast Cancer — 2000

2000

Viki Battles Breast Cancer

Viki’s battle with breast cancer began quietly, with something millions of women could recognize: a routine mammogram. After repeatedly postponing her physical because of problems involving her family, Viki finally went for the examination. An abnormal area on her mammogram led to additional testing and eventually a biopsy. In March, Viki received the news she had feared—the tumor was malignant.

At first, Viki tried to face the possibility of cancer largely on her own. Her relationship with Ben Davidson was troubled, and she was reluctant to tell her children until she knew exactly what she was facing. She found unexpected understanding in Dorian, who had survived breast cancer herself, and support from Kevin as she underwent further testing and waited for the diagnosis.

Once the cancer was confirmed, Viki faced one of the most difficult tasks of all: telling Joey and Jessica. Although frightened herself, she tried to reassure her children that her prognosis was good and that she intended to fight the disease. The storyline allowed Viki to be both the strong mother her family depended upon and a woman privately terrified by what might lie ahead.

Doctors recommended a modified radical mastectomy followed by reconstructive surgery. On March 29, One Life to Live devoted an entire episode to Viki as she spent her final day before entering the hospital. Rather than filling the episode with dramatic twists, the story followed Viki through the ordinary pieces of her life—her family, her work at The Banner and moments alone with her fears—as she prepared herself for surgery.

The operation and reconstruction went well, but Viki then learned that cancer cells had been discovered in some of her lymph nodes and that she would need chemotherapy. Treatment brought new physical and emotional challenges. Viki became ill during chemotherapy, suffered a frightening allergic reaction and eventually began losing her hair. Ben helped her through one of the most difficult moments when she decided to shave her head rather than wait for the remaining hair to fall out.

Viki and Ben had reconciled by then, and his support became an important part of her recovery. The story also explored Viki’s fears about her changed body and intimacy after surgery. Rather than treating those concerns as insignificant, Ben reassured Viki that neither the surgery nor cancer had changed his love for her.

Eventually Viki received the news that her cancer was in remission. But the storyline did not suggest that the experience could simply be forgotten. Cancer had changed Viki and her family, and the possibility of recurrence remained part of the reality she had learned to live with.

Erika and the Story

Erika Slezak approached the storyline with particular care because breast cancer was not a fantasy adventure or an extraordinary soap-opera catastrophe—it was something viewers and their families confronted in real life. She worked with One Life to Live medical consultant Cora McCraw, read extensively about the disease and spoke personally with breast-cancer survivors, including women working in the building where the show was produced.

Those conversations helped Erika understand not only the medical aspects of breast cancer but also its emotional effects. She later recalled being struck by how many people had been touched by the disease, either personally or through someone they loved.

Erika initially had reservations about taking Viki through such a painful story, but came to regard the experience as extraordinarily rewarding. She also believed it was important that Viki not simply be pronounced “cured” and have cancer disappear from her life. Even after treatment ended, the uncertainty that accompanies cancer needed to remain part of Viki’s experience.

The storyline drew particular attention for the scenes in which Viki told her children about her diagnosis. Erika’s performance captured the conflict between Viki’s own fear and her instinct as a mother to remain strong and reassure her family.

Recognition

The impact of the storyline extended beyond One Life to Live. In October 2000, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention presented the program with the first-ever Sentinel for Health Award for Daytime Drama for “Viki’s Breast Cancer.” The CDC recognized the storyline for its portrayal of the early diagnosis of breast cancer and the emotional impact of the disease on Viki and her family.

The award was particularly significant because the entries were evaluated through multiple rounds of judging involving CDC personnel and outside experts in public health, academia, advocacy and entertainment. The recognition reflected what One Life to Live had attempted to accomplish with Viki’s story: use a familiar and beloved character to tell a serious health story with accuracy while showing the fear, treatment, family relationships and hope that accompany a cancer diagnosis.