Racing with Purpose: Dragon Boats, Women’s Health, and the Future of Fertility
This past weekend, I had the honor of joining the San Diego International Dragon Boat Race for the fifth year in a row. But this time felt different. For the very first time, we competed as an all-women’s team, lining up alongside more than 30 women’s teams from across the U.S. and internationally. The energy was powerful, but what touched me most went far beyond the racing.
Among the competitors, one team left a lasting mark on my heart: the Team Survivors San Diego Sea Dragons. Every paddler on that boat is a cancer survivor. Watching them race with such joy, determination, and unity was profoundly moving. They weren’t just competing; they were showing the world what it means to live fully and fiercely, even after life-changing battles.
This moment carried special weight because September 20 is World Gynecologic Oncology Day 💜 🎗️ , and October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month 💝 . All of these are to raise awareness for gynecologic cancers and women’s health. Seeing the Sea Dragons reminded me that while cancer may disrupt lives, it does not define them. It also highlighted an often-overlooked but critical issue for young women diagnosed with cancers, including breast cancer: fertility preservation.
Many treatments, while life-saving, can compromise fertility 🪺 . For women who hope to build families in the future, options like egg and embryo freezing offer a chance to safeguard that dream. The key is timing—discussing fertility preservation with both an oncology team and a fertility specialist as soon as possible after diagnosis, so that plans can be made without delaying treatment.
Dragon boating has always symbolized strength and community for me. But this year, it became something bigger: a platform to raise awareness, to share stories of survivorship, and to remind women everywhere that their futures—including the possibility of motherhood—deserve to be protected.
As I reflect on the weekend, I carry with me the courage of those survivors and the reminder that women’s health goes beyond treatment—it’s about preserving hope, choices, and life’s possibilities.
Here’s to honoring women’s health, championing fertility preservation, and paddling forward with resilience—together, on the water and beyond.
ABLIFE, You Are Able 🧡 💚 ❤️ 🤎 🩷 💛 💜 💙