Trooper is Beating Breast Cancer with help of 400 Fellow State Troopers

In fact, 400 state troopers throughout Utah are wearing pink ribbons in support of Bonnie Kunz, a fellow trooper and mother of six, who is undergoing treatment for breast cancer at the Intermountain Medical Center Breast Care Center in Murray. 

“When we found out Bonnie had breast cancer, it was a shock for those of us who know her,” says the UHP’s Lt. Jeff Willmore. “Major Mike Kuehn in our department brought up the idea to our superintendent, Colonel Daniel Fuhr. He had a meeting with Bonnie to see what else we could do to help, and it was authorized for troopers to wear the ribbons on a voluntary basis throughout the rest of the year.” 

As a member of the Utah Highway Patrol, Kunz works on the bike-patrol squad at Salt Lake Community College. She’s been touched by the willingness of her co-workers to support her, and the great care she’s getting at Intermountain Medical Center. 

“It means a lot to have so many of my co-workers supporting me by wearing the pink ribbons,” says Kunz. “It’s hard to really put into words. If you know how strict the highway patrol is about its uniform, it’s amazing this was approved.” 

In late February of this year, Kunz noticed a lump on one of her breasts about the same time she went in for her annual OB exam. The doctor couldn’t feel the lump, but still asked if Kunz would like a referral for a mammogram, and she said yes.

“I put off going in for a few months, but I finally realized I better go in,” she says. “I went into Intermountain Medical Center for a mammogram and ultrasound. Dr. Parkinson called me later that day to tell me they knew it was cancer.” 

She quickly had a mastectomy on July 2, and began treatment at Intermountain Medical Center’s Breast Care Center, one of the leading centers in the country. 

Brett Parkinson, MD, medical director of the Intermountain Medical Center Breast Care Center, says Kunz was fortunate to feel the lump early and to get a screening mammogram. 

“What’s so unique about Bonnie is the age at which she developed breast cancer,” says Dr. Parkinson. “She’s only 39, and it’s quite uncommon to develop it under 40. However upon feeling a lump, she took the necessary steps by getting the right tests performed. We were able to find the problem, give her a diagnosis, and her treatment and recovery are going really well.”

That quick action likely saved Kunz’s life, he says. Unfortunately, many Utah women may be confused about when to get a screening mammogram. 

In 2009 the United States Services Preventative Task Force recommended women shouldn’t have regular screenings between the ages of 40 and 49. The change in recommendations confused women. New research shows that women benefit from beginning screening at age 40.