‘France saved my life’: American moves to Paris - then survives breast cancer twice

Last month Robin Allison Davis, an American living in Paris, released the paperback version of her memoir, Surviving Paris: A Memoir of Healing in the City of Light. 

The book is an account of Ms Davis’ experience of surviving two breast cancer diagnoses after moving to France. 

“Often with Paris stories, people love to paint this beautiful picture of croissants and dating, where nothing bad ever happens,” says Ms Davis, who at the time of writing is now five-years cancer-free. “I wanted to write something real. I’ve had people reach out to me since publishing the book to say that they loved reading about all the things nobody ever talks about.” 

The book was first published last year and September’s paperback release came ahead of breast cancer awareness month, known in France as Octobre Rose, with pink-themed activities taking place across the country. 

“I am very grateful that France sees it as an important month to honour.” 

Ms Davis, who works as a producer, came to Paris in August 2016.

“I refer to it in my book as ‘the Paris plan’. Moving countries on my own was something I really plotted and thought about. Once I decided to go for it, I put a plan into place. I am a huge planner,” said Ms Davis, 42.

However, after completing a Masters degree in Global Communications at the American University of Paris, Ms Davis was diagnosed with breast cancer - something she never could have planned for. 

“I got my diagnosis less than two years after moving to France - really when I felt like I was beginning to hit my stride. I was making friends and had just started a new job. I just felt so blindsided,” she said. 

Ms Davis was suddenly faced with the “daunting” challenge of navigating the French healthcare system.

“I had been learning French for less than two years so there were a lot of things I didn’t know. Even for my French friends, medical terms can be confusing. I was lucky that a lot of my doctors did speak English. Especially with my oncologist, I really only wanted to speak in English so there was no chance of misunderstanding,” she said.

Ms Davis had not yet received her carte Vitale and had to pay for substantial procedures such as MRIs, biopsies and sonograms.

“Everyone always talks about how, compared to the US, healthcare is less expensive in France. For me, prices were lower, but so was my salary. I took a massive pay cut moving to France and there was no opportunity to do a copay the way you do in the US, when you pay some upfront and the bill comes a few months later. So it was quite a financial strain,” she said. 

After being given the all-clear, Ms Davis’ GP discovered another lump in 2020 while going through a physical check-up ahead of a new work contract. 

“France really saved my life by diagnosing my recurrence so early. I didn’t have to deal with delays and denials. In the US, if insurance refuses to pay for a test then you can’t get it done. In France, I was able to have all the tests done quickly so the doctors have a fuller picture of what they are dealing with,” she said.

“From that point on, however, with my work contract they were hounding me to sign paperwork saying that they would give me life insurance, but not if I die from cancer,” added Ms Davis. 

In addition, being rediagnosed during the pandemic meant that Ms Davis’ family could not fly to France to offer support as they had in 2018, leaving her to rely on the community she had built in Paris.

“They really came through for me,” she said.

“I think for me, people see breast cancer as something that happens maybe in your 50s or 60s, but people are being diagnosed much younger these days. I was diagnosed at 34. So, I hope there are young women who are looking at these campaigns and knowing they should be doing self checks now, so they can be diagnosed at earlier stages,” she added.  

Surviving Paris: A Memoir of Healing in the City of Light, published by HarperCollins/Amistad, is available at most EU and US book retailers. For further details and upcoming events, see robinadavis.com.