Chosen Population: Breast Cancer Survivors
- Lack of support after treatment
- Prolonged health issues
- Failures of the medical system
Pitch Brainstorm:
- What kind of experience will you create?
- Escape Room
- Why is this experience a good way to help BYU students understand and empathize with your chosen population’s experiences?
- It creates a physical challenge and simulates the struggles of trying to break out of Cancer treatment and the following health complications. The steps will be metaphorical and correlate with specific medical and mental challenges.
- How will this experience accurately and sensitively represent your chosen population’s experiences?
- The point of the escape room is that it will keep sending you back to the beginning. This is to make the point that, for most, breast cancer is a diagnosis for life. And you can’t escape it.
- How will you organize or design this experience for your BYU student audience?
- We’ll have little puzzles contained within the classroom environment and/or a physical trinket puzzle deal. There will be checkpoints that makes sure they’re solving the puzzle swiftly enough to finish the experience within the time. At the checkpoints we will explain the narrative of the escape room so far.
THE PLAN OUTLINE:
(Anything with * is in black light)
(Tyler & Amelia, Sydney & Lucee)
- Flashlight
- Black Lights
- Blank piece of paper (DIAGNOSIS*)
- Start in the dark:
- Flashlight activity
- No batteries
- Clue in battery capsule
- Find batteries (3)
- Flashlight on, SEE (335) being the code for the lock
- The lock is containing The Essay
- Secret message in The Essay is about “being done” with cancer and with the puzzle (lies we cappin)
CHECKPOINT 1: Explanation – Support
2. Start “Go find the key.”
- Key opens The Wooden Box
- Inside The Wooden Box, Paper on Paper
- When aligned with The Essay, Box of Honey
- *FOR (Also includes the scribbles for eventually lining up the final message)
- Lights are turned off when opening Box of Honey
- Inside Box of Honey, Unfolded/uncreased Origami paper (Impossible Puzzle)
- Strict Time limit
- Nonsesne blacklight on paper
- Shaming
- No instructions
CHECKPOINT 2: Explanation – Empathize
3. Start: Give them The Anagram
- Go ii ram
- *Hint to what the word is
- *Hint to The Markers (represents location of instructions)
- Instruction Ideas
- Written instructions
- QR Code
- Etc…
- Then we provide The Origami+
- Once folded, *LIFE
- Pieces can then be assembled for final phrase: DIAGNOSIS FOR LIFE
CHECKPOINT 3: 1) Explanation – Engage 2) Conclusion – “SEE”
THE PLAN INSTRUCTIONS:
(Anything with * is in black light)
(Tyler & Amelia, Sydney & Lucee)
- Clue in battery capsule: “Not all clues lie where your hands can easily reach. Some wait above, atop the SCREEN that flickers with stories, silently guarding the POWER you need.”
- The Essay: FIND BELOW
- Secret message in The Essay is about “being done” with cancer and with the puzzle (lies we cappin)
- Box of Honey
CHECKPOINT 1: (41) Explanation – Support: In this first challenge, you began in the dark with a powerless flashlight. By searching carefully and working together to find the batteries, you were able to bring light into the room and unlock the next step.
This reflects what many breast cancer survivors need most: support. Their journey can feel uncertain and overwhelming, like moving through darkness without direction. Having someone willing to search alongside them, pay attention, and help steady the light can make a powerful difference.
Just as the flashlight couldn’t shine without the batteries you gathered, survivors draw strength from friends, family, and community who help restore clarity, energy, and hope. This challenge shows how support–simply showing up and being present–can help bring light to even the darkest moments.
Strict Time limit: 15 seconds
CHECKPOINT 2: (36) Explanation – Empathize: In this challenge, you were told simply, “Go find the key,” and quickly faced confusion—locked boxes, misaligned papers, sudden darkness, and being shamed for not solving a puzzle no one could reasonably solve.
Many breast cancer survivors experience the same pressure: unclear expectations, overwhelming demands, and judgment when they don’t recover “fast enough.” They’re often told to stay positive, even when their reality is complex and exhausting.
This challenge shows how damaging it is to be shamed for struggling with the impossible. Survivors don’t need judgment or urgency—they need EMPATHY: people who listen, acknowledge their struggles, and understand that healing isn’t linear.
- *Hint to what the word is: “A traditional Japanese art of folding”
- *Hint to The Markers (represents location of instructions): “Follow the tape that marks the way.”
CHECKPOINT 3: 1) (33) Explanation – Engage: In this final challenge, the anagram only made sense once you looked closer, used the hints, and followed the hidden instructions. You had to engage with every piece—the QR code, the origami, and the final assembly to reveal the message.
This reflects an essential part of supporting breast cancer survivors: you have to engage. Just as the puzzle required attention and effort, survivors feel supported when others seek real information, listen carefully, and stay involved long after the initial shock of treatments has passed.
This challenge represents ENGAGEMENT—choosing to stay informed, present, and attentive so survivors know their journey matters to you.
CHECKPOINT 3: 2) (44) Conclusion – “SEE”: Now, you’ve completed all the puzzles, but like the journey of many breast cancer survivors, the experience didn’t truly “end” when you first thought it did. Breast cancer is often, though not always, a diagnosis for life. Survivors, like my mom, continue to navigate the aftermath of treatment years after being declared “cancer-free.” They live with uncertainty, fear of recurrence, and ongoing challenges.
Through this experience, you practiced the three ways you can help survivors: through the acronym SEE.
- Support
- Empathize
- Engage
Just as you needed the flashlight to SEE through the darkness, survivors need people who are willing to SEE them. By supporting, empathizing, and engaging, you help them feel heard, understood, and less alone.
DIAGNOSIS FOR LIFE is more than a phrase; it’s a reminder that survivorship is ongoing, and that meaningful support can make all the difference.
Timeline:
- 1st Checkpoint by 0:00-4:00
- 2nd Checkpoint 4:00-7:00
- Complete the 7:00-12:00
The Essay:
Breast cancer survivors speak of their journeYs with a mixture of bravery and vulnerability, each story marked by moments that feel both overwhelming and transformative. Many recall the day of diagnosis as a kind of emotional rupture, a sudden shift that forces new priorities. Yet through this upheaval, survivors Ongoingly find reservoirs of unexpected strength. They describe the strange duality of fear and determination—how one can coexist with the other, shaping the path Undefiably taken forward. Even in the most difficult moments, they lean into the support systems that help them maintain their sense of self, their hope, and their resolve.
Friends and family play crucial roles during treatment. One surviVor mentioned how a neighbor arrived with a small gift she had carefully unboxed that morning, unsure whether it was enough but hoping it might bring warmth. These gestures, no matter how simple, often become symbolic reminders of connection. Another woman described the way patients exchange quiet encouragement during chemotherapy sessions, their unspoken empathy lifting spirits when words fail and helping them Endure long hours of waiting. These relationships can provide the grounding necessary to continue, Centering survivors in moments that otherwise feel unstable.
As treatment progresses, survivors speak of reclaiming their bodies and identities. They practice living in the present, appreciating each tiny milestone: an afternoon without fatigue, a morning when the mirror reflects not just physical change but a deeper resilience that has Opened within them. Some find themselves drawn back to routines they once took for granted, Mitting themselves small kindnesses, writing journals of gratitude, and celebrating even modest improvements. The journey is rarely linear, but it is rich with victories that Patiently accumulate—layer by layer—like a Lattice of strength reinforced through habit and hope. Every survivor speaks about moments when they Emerge from setbacks stronger than they expected, finding that determination Takes root in the smallest choices.
Many also note how their worldview changes; they Experience time differently, value differently, love differently. Through community support, professional care, and personal reflection, they discover a profound Deepening of gratitude for life’s everyday details. The structure of their recovery resembles the careful architecture of a honeycomb—resilient, interconnected, and capable of holding immense emotional weight.
Ultimately, survivors remind us that healing demands courage and patience. Their stories show that adversity can Transform rather than diminish, that hope can remain steady even when circumstances Harden around them. They prove that resilience does not simply appear—it Evolves through persistence, community, and compassion. With every step, they Trace new meanings in their lives, building a future shaped by insight rather than fear.
In honoring their stories, we witness how strength Rises quietly in the face of uncertainty, how compassion Illuminates even the darkest periods, and how survivors Aspire to lift others through advocacy, honesty, and shared experience. Their reflections Linger long after the final treatment, forming a legacy of courage that inspires all who hear them.