‘I’m a survivor and I’m proud;’ Detective, breast cancer survivor drives pink ribbon cruiser

DAYTON — You may see a pink Dayton police cruiser around the city this month.

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As October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Dayton Police Department added a Pink Ribbon Cruiser to its fleet, according to a Facebook post from the department.

Detective Dyan Thomas drives the cruiser as a breast cancer survivor, the post said.

She was diagnosed in 2008 at the age of 36.

“Getting the diagnosis really kind of caught me off guard, it took me a little bit to process what was happening, and then of course, family took time to process,” Thomas said

Thomas said the cancer doesn’t run in her family.

“Balancing the treatment, work, and [my] child, plus everything else life throws at you… it was difficult, I can’t sit here and say it was easy,” Thomas said.

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But she says her routine as a police officer helped her through everything.

And 15 years after she was diagnosed, Thomas is in her 24th year with the Dayton Police Department.

“To show that we support people who are fighting or who have fought against breast cancer, and I like that I get to drive this car because I’m hoping that again it will spark a conversation. It will get people to ask me, ‘Hey why are you driving this car’ and I’ll be happy to tell them. You know I’m a survivor and I’m proud of that,” Thomas said.

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