In Memory of Elle Simone

 

At the end of “America’s Test Kitchen” today, they showed a picture of Elle Simone (one of the cooks on the show), with the dates 1976-2026. I thought, “Oh no! Did her ovarian cancer get her?” I looked her up on my phone and discovered that, alas, it had. She died on January 5.

Elle was the first African-American woman to appear as a regular host on ATK. She had a really interesting history, working as a social worker in her native Detroit, then taking a job as a cook on a cruise ship. Per her Wikipedia entry, she moved to New York, went to culinary school, and did an internship on the Food Network before starting with ATK.

She was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2016 and became active with the Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance. Like me, she was diagnosed with Stage 1 cancer, which is incredibly rare with ovarian cancer. Because its symptoms are so vague and can be attributable to so many other maladies, ovarian cancer is not caught until Stage 3 or 4. Elle’s cancer went into remission, but came back in 2020.

Elle was one of my favorite hosts on ATK. I loved her fresh, positive attitude. When she first started on ATK, she was definitely full figured, as I am. She lost quite a bit of weight and became an advocate of healthy eating. But no matter her size, heavy or thinner, in treatment or remission, she exuded joy and carried herself with authority.

I was sad to hear of her death. And a bit shaken. As an ovarian cancer survivor myself, I know that ovarian cancer tends to be one of the more deadly cancers. Often, this is because it is usually not detected until it is Stage 3 or 4. But even when caught in Stage 1, it can come back, as it did for Elle and as it did for me (three times).

And for me, as not only an ovarian cancer survivor but also the carrier of a mutated BRCA-1 gene, my risk for recurrence is always there at a fairly high level, even though I’ve had No Evidence of Disease (NED) since 2011. I have made some changes in my life that I think have helped me in regard to my chances of recurrence, but of course, I can’t control everything.

And so, Elle’s death from ovarian cancer, as any such death I hear about of people I know or famous people I am familiar with, shakes me, because I know it could be me. This is especially true when I am approaching my semi-annual check ups, as I am now. My next blood test is in March, as is my yearly CT scan. And while most of the time, I can put worries about recurrences on the back burner, twice a year, they take center stage. So I will try to keep myself as calm as I can over the next month and half and keep in mind that I’ve been NED for quite some time.

Rest in peace and power, Elle. And all my sisters who’ve died of this disease.