Many women who suffer from breast cancer are ashamed or embarrassed and cope privately with the disease, doctors say. But public figures face an additional burden. Rep. Deborah Pryce, an Ohio Republican who works with Myrick, knows about the demands of public service on private life. Pryce tried to keep the matter private for the sake of her daughter. Everybody wants to know what the diagnosis is, what the prognosis is.
People ask the awfulest, rudest things.
If you are in the public light, you have to expect that, I guess. Her daughter died in September. Throughout her daughter's struggle, Pryce says she gained strength from her Capitol Hill colleagues, including Myrick, whom she serves with on the Rules Committee. Then lo and behold this happened to her. Sometimes it was sharp and pulsating.