Robin Roberts is a much-loved member of Good Morning America and is a familiar face for many who wake up to the morning news program during the week. It's been well documented that the former sports broadcaster battled breast cancer, and she often uses her platform to raise awareness of the disease.
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And it's not just her fans that she has helped, but her co-stars too. Back in 2013 during a live mammogram on GMA, Amy Robach discovered she had breast cancer.
The mother-of-two was just 40 at the time and turned to Robin for support during the difficult period in her life.
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Reflecting on how Robin - who had ultimately convinced her to get the mammogram on live TV to help others - was there for her, Amy spoke at the 10th Annual Breast Cancer Summit - a free community service of the Long Island Plastic Surgical Group - to share her story with others.
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"She [Robin Roberts] said: you've got this. And it's amazing what those words mean in those moments to hear 'you've got this'. And to see someone who went through not just once, but twice, and was standing there vibrant and, beautiful and strong and, and about to go interview the Pope.
"You know, it was a moment for me that just gave me the strength, the emotional strength I really needed at that time. Because you're so fragile. Fear is such a powerful thing, and it's crippling at first. It just is. And so to have those, those small acts of kindness, that was probably more than just a small act of kindness, because she really squeezed me in."
Amy Robach opened up about Robin Roberts supporting her - credit LONG ISLAND PLASTIC SURGICAL GROUP
She went on to relive the moment Robin convinced her to get her mammogram. "I wasn't planning on getting my mammogram until I was 50, because that's what the US preventive task force tells us, right? If you're a woman of average risk, meaning you have no family history, you should wait until you're 50. So I thought, Why would I do it in front of 5 million people? Seems strange.
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"She [my producer] implored me to talk to Robin Roberts, my friend and colleague, and of course, a breast cancer thriver. And I went into her office and I said, Robin, they're asking me to do this live mammogram in the middle of Times Square. And she looked at me and she laughed.
"She goes, Oh, you're the one they picked. I was like, Right, exactly. Why me? And I explained to her that I had no connection to breast cancer whatsoever, and it just felt false."
Amy Robach and Robin Roberts are close friends and co-stars
She continued: "And she looked at me and she said, You know what? I know exactly why you're the one who we chose because you think cancer can't happen to you, and I'm sure you're fine, but that's exactly what we're trying to explain to women, that anybody is susceptible. And when she told me that more than 80 per cent of breast cancer patients survivors had no family history,
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"I was floored…In fact, I would've assumed that would've been flipped. And she told me, ‘If you walk into that mammo van, you will save a life.’ And I remember I gave her a hug. I said, Can I hug you? Because I can't believe you just convinced me to do something that I was absolutely not going to do.
"So thank you. It's the right call. I think most of us get into this business, a journalist, despite what maybe public opinion may think, to create change, to open people's minds and hearts.”
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