36 LONGISLANDPRESS.COM • OCTOBER 2018
PRESS HEALTH
FOR BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS: A WORLD OF PINK
BY RUTH BASHINSKY
In 2016, Shawand Marquez’s world
fell apart. First, she was diagnosed
with breast cancer. Then her mother
passed away a day before Marquez’s
double mastectomy. Marquez’s wedding
was a month later.
Marquez’s doctor recommended A
World of Pink, a Long Island health
facility that helps women recovering
from breast cancer get the help they
need. Christine Guarino, its lead mastectomy
fitter, met with Marquez and
fitted her with a prosthetic and a bra
to wear at Marquez’s wedding.
“Christine was there for me every
step of the way,” says Marquez, 38. “I
wore the prosthetics and the bra, and
it felt so good. I was able to walk down
the aisle feeling confident.”
Marquez, who had all her expenses
taken care of, is one of the
5,000 women that the nonprofit has
supported since Guarino — a
former dental hygienist who
became a certified mastectomy
fitter — purchased All Island
Prosthetics and invested $1
million of her own money into
the organization. She founded
the group in 2012.
“I had an amazing dream ...
that I could help women all over
the world,” says Guarino. “If
you come in my door and your
insurance company doesn’t
cover something and you need
it, you are getting it through my
nonprofit. That is why people
donate and give to the World
of Pink Foundation and help
raise money, because they see the
results.”
Most insurance companies cover
at least part of the cost of breast prosthesis,
a specially designed artificial
breast form that fits into a bra pocket.
If a woman does not have insurance
or only a percentage is covered and
it is still a hardship for them to pay
the difference, the World of Pink
Foundation steps in.
This fall, Guarino is
launching a new firstof
its-kind prosthetic.
And this month brings
the grand opening of
her new 2,000-squarefoot
Melville location
that will offer educational
seminars,
fundraising events and
personalized fittings by
appointment.
“My goal was to open
the first aftercare center
of its kind for women
everywhere,” she says.
“It’s like Victoria’s Secret
on steroids. It’s beautiful.”
A World of Pink’s annual
fashion gala is on Oct. 29. Tickets
are $125. For more information visit
aworldofpink.com or worldofpinkfoundation.
org.
Christine Guarino, founder of A World of Pink, hugs a
survivor, who walked in their annual fashion show.