Cancer Round 1 – Early Stage Breast Cancer

Sometimes, the bravest thing we can do is listen to our bodies, even when uncomfortable.  

In the winter of 2016, I was 32 years old and still considered too young for a screening mammogram. One evening, while showering, I noticed that my left breast felt strange and lumpy. Alarmed, I recognized it felt very different from my right breast. However, at 32, I convinced myself it was probably nothing to worry about.  

A few months later, the lumps became more noticeable. I decided to mention it to my doctor during my upcoming well-woman exam.  

Since we had just moved, I was seeing a new doctor. During the breast exam, she laughed at me, pulling the nurse into the joke. “That is not a lump,” she said. “It’s just how breast tissue feels. Quit drinking so much coffee!” I felt embarrassed, but I knew this wasn’t the usual feeling of my breast tissue. Sadly, her dismissive attitude made me ashamed, and I ignored the lumps for four years.  

By 2020, I could no longer ignore the changes in my breast. The lumps had definitely grown, and my nipple was crusty and painful. I made an appointment with my current doctor. She examined me and mentioned that while it didn’t feel like cancer, the palpable lumps warranted a mammogram. She suggested that my chapped nipple was nothing serious.  

About a week later, I had my mammogram. The radiology tech took initial images and then asked me to wait. Almost immediately, they called me back for more images, followed by an ultrasound. After another tech repeated the ultrasound, I was taken to a small office to speak with a doctor. She informed me that I had large, suspicious areas of calcifications and some enlarged lymph nodes. They wanted me to get biopsies, which they would order through my doctor.  

Driving home, I was in a daze. The doctor hadn’t explicitly told me I had cancer, but I suspected it. Later that evening, my doctor called to confirm my fears and referred me to a breast surgeon for a biopsy in the coming days.  

The biopsy was painful and confirmed that I had cancer. My breast surgeon called with the results: I had stage 0 Ductal Carcinoma In Situ (DCIS), meaning the cancer was confined to the milk ducts. However, due to the lengthy diagnosis, the cancer had filled my entire breast. Additionally, I had Paget’s Disease of the breast, a rare condition associated with underlying cancer. My only option was a mastectomy with nipple removal.  

I was fortunate to schedule surgery within a few weeks. The days between my diagnosis and the surgery were filled with tests, including a bone scan, a breast MRI, and a CT scan of my chest, abdomen, and pelvis. Thankfully, all those scans came back clear, so we proceeded with the mastectomy plan.  

My birthday is on October 16. I ended up having my surgery the next day, October 17. Happy birthday to me! The year was 2020, and everything felt strange. I had to attend all my doctor’s appointments alone, and I had heard many people couldn’t have anyone with them during surgery. I was lucky to bring my husband, Kevin, who was a great comfort during this challenging time. It would have been much harder without him.  

After surgery, I was technically cancer-free! The doctor removed all the cancerous tissue. Initially, she didn’t get clean margins and had to return for more tissue, but she assured me everything should be fine now. I still need regular follow-ups and scans every three months, but I’m ready to get back to real life!