The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Want You to Feel 'Empowered, Not Afraid' to Get a Mammogram

Dallas Cowboys cheerleader Julissa Garcia (above) was 14 years old when her mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. “I was very scared and frightened,” remembers Garcia , now 24. “My mom is my best friend. She is my biggest supporter, my number one cheerleader.” The Cowboys Cheerleaders have teamed up with Novartis for their “Your Attention, Please” campaign, an initiative urging women to understand their own breast cancer risk and prioritize early detection. Garcia shares her mother's story to encourage other young women to advocate for their health and be active in screening for breast cancer. When Christina Garcia, Julissa's mother, was 43, she skipped her annual mammogram. “The next year when she went back to the doctor, they found a little lump in her breast,” Garcia says; Christina was then diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer at age 44. “That one year that she didn't go get to her screenings truly changed her life and it changed my life," she says. "Now her journey has inspired me to prioritize regular self-checks, my overall health and staying on top of my breast health.” Garcia grew up in Odessa, Texas, where her parents own a trucking company that hauls sand and gravel in West Texas and New Mexico. “She is the best mom a girl could ever ask for,” Garcia says. “Everything that I am and everything that I will be is because of my mom.” Garcia recalls watching her mother battle through chemo and radiation. “I remember seeing her constantly have to show up and fight every single day at every single doctor's appointment,” Garcia says. “It was very challenging for us as a family. I thank the Lord every day that I still have with her and every moment that I still get to be with her and FaceTime her and ask her all the important questions. I'm just truly so honored to still have her here.” Fellow Cowboys cheerleader Trinity Miles ' beloved cousin Annmarie, for whom she served as the flower girl in her wedding, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2021. She was just 40, and it was her first mammogram. Two days after the screening, she was back at the doctor’s office for a biopsy. Within a week she was preparing for a double mastectomy. “When she was first diagnosed, the speed at which everything happened was overwhelming,” Miles, 23, (above) told PEOPLE. "She has taught me so much about resilience, vulnerability, and bravery.” At the time her cousin was diagnosed, her three children were ages 7, 6, and 2. “It reminded everyone why Annemarie was fighting so hard,” Miles says. “She’s beat this cancer, and she’s on the other side of it." And now Miles urges everyone to get checkups. “What her story has taught me is that cancer doesn’t always wait until the recommended screening checks,” Miles says. And Garcia, celebrating 10 years since her mom was declared cancer-free, has a similar message to share. “I think the biggest message is: Don't wait,” Garcia says. “Early detection can make all the difference in the world. I want people to feel empowered, not afraid, because awareness leads to action and action can save lives.”