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I don't understand why women die of advanced breast cancer? it's so easy to detect a breast lump through self exam. Some women are just lazy I swear to God. I check my breasts for lumps in the shower every single day through thorough self exam.
My dog died of cancer August 18, 2009. I did an extremely thourough self exam at that time because cancer was on my mind. October 2009 I found a lump in my left breast. I decided to go with bilateral mastectomy followed by chemo and radiation. I was stage IIb (early stage cancer) and sure that by hitting it with everything I coukd I would be cancer free. About 8 months after completing treatment, March 2011, I was diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer; it had spread to my bones. We have only round one chemo in three years that has held it back, and that was for about a year. I just started a new chemo last week, still hoping to find one that works. The early stage cancer that you think wouldn't be a killer IS killing me. It is extensive throughout my skeletal system including bone marrow. I have it throughout both lobes of my liver. I currently can barely walk across a room without being winded, most likely from cancer (will know today or tomorrow) or possibly toxicity from one of my previous treatments.
One of the biggest "beefs" many stage IV patients have with Pinktober is attitudes like yours that assume cancer is a benign challenge that can be cured and if it isn't well then, somehow it's our own fault.
I think Ovarian cancer needs more publicity. It often does not have any symptoms until the final stages.
Ovarian cancer is very rare compared to breast cancer. Since it often does not have any symptoms until the final stages, there's no sure fire ways to catch it earlier. There are no standard screenings for ovarian cancer. The point of breast cancer awareness is so people will take advantage of the screening process that is available to help save their lives.
To answer the OP, I do think breast cancer gets a lot of publicity, BUT I don't think they are dong it right. Breast cancer needs awareness because it's so prevalent. 22% of women get breast cancer. That's 22 women out of 100. What other cancer has that high of a rate?
What they're doing wrong is stressing the genetic/family connection. I always thought I wasn't at risk of breast cancer because nobody in my family have had it. Meanwhile, only 10% to 15% of people diagnosed with breast cancer have a family history. That means out of the 22 out of 100 people diagnosed with breast cancer, only 2.2 to 3.3 people out of 100 have a family history.
It's very important that people with a family history are aware because their odds of having breast cancer are significantly increased to like 60% to 80%. But the rest of the population, 85% of women diagnosed with breast cancer have no family history. The publicity about family history gives a false sense of security to people who don't have a family history when they are the majority of the people who get breast cancer.
Ovarian cancer is very rare compared to breast cancer. Since it often does not have any symptoms until the final stages, there's no sure fire ways to catch it earlier. There are no standard screenings for ovarian cancer.
Get a pelvic exam every year. The doctor can then determine if one needs a scan. I've lost two friends to ovarian cancer, one who waited a year before she went for the scan that her gynecologist had recommended during her pelvic exam. By then it was at an advanced stage and much more difficult to treat.
Get a pelvic exam every year. The doctor can then determine if one needs a scan. I've lost two friends to ovarian cancer, one who waited a year before she went for the scan that her gynecologist had recommended during her pelvic exam. By then it was at an advanced stage and much more difficult to treat.
"Even though a pelvic exam is unlikely to reveal early forms of ovarian cancer, it can still be a useful tool for helping doctors detect variations from baseline conditions. Therefore, it is highly recommended that women age 18 and up have mandatory annual vaginal exams and that women age 35 and up have annual rectovaginal exams (in which the physician palpates the rectum and vagina simultaneously to detect abnormal swelling andtenderness). "Ovations: Ovarian Cancer Facts | Symptoms | Diagnosis | Stages
"Symptomless ovarian cancer is most often detected during a woman's regular gynecological examination. Your physician will palpitate your ovaries during your pelvic and rectal exam for the presence of ovarian cysts or fibroid tumors. If any abnormalities are noted, he will follow up with further testing which may include an ultrasound and..." - WebMD
"Even though a pelvic exam is unlikely to reveal early forms of ovarian cancer, it can still be a useful tool for helping doctors detect variations from baseline conditions. Therefore, it is highly recommended that women age 18 and up have mandatory annual vaginal exams and that women age 35 and up have annual rectovaginal exams (in which the physician palpates the rectum and vagina simultaneously to detect abnormal swelling andtenderness). "Ovations: Ovarian Cancer Facts | Symptoms | Diagnosis | Stages
"Symptomless ovarian cancer is most often detected during a woman's regular gynecological examination. Your physician will palpitate your ovaries during your pelvic and rectal exam for the presence of ovarian cysts or fibroid tumors. If any abnormalities are noted, he will follow up with further testing which may include an ultrasound and..." - WebMD
I'm not going back and forth with you. I have personal experience with this and the only way they ruled out ovarian cancer was having surgery. It still stands that a pelvic exam is UNLIKELY to reveal early forms of ovarian cancer. "Get a pelvic exam" as advice is insulting and it, whether you meant it or not, blames the victim if cancer is found. I will assume your ovarian cancer was caught by a pelvic exam and if so, I'm happy for you.
I'm not going back and forth with you. I have personal experience with this and the only way they ruled out ovarian cancer was having surgery. I will assume your ovarian cancer was caught by a pelvic exam and if so, I'm happy for you.
Excuse me? It doesn't sound as if you even read what I initially wrote. My response was to a post that stated that there are no standard screenings for ovarian cancer.
Quote:
Originally Posted by tahiti
"Get a pelvic exam" as advice is insulting and it, whether you meant it or not, blames the victim if cancer is found.
Many women avoid pelvic exams because they're uncomfortable. That advice was in no way meant to be insulting and I'm sorry you took it that way.
I don't understand why women die of advanced breast cancer? it's so easy to detect a breast lump through self exam. Some women are just lazy I swear to God. I check my breasts for lumps in the shower every single day through thorough self exam.
I think you've come off very insensitive and uninformed as well. I do breast exams every month--not every day as that seems like excessive worry to me. I never did feel a lump and still can't--because there isn't one--I have invasive lobular, which accounts for around 10% of BC. What I did find was what they call "architectural distortion," and I found that when I looked in the mirror one morning as I put on my deodorant and had to lift my arm. Do you lift your arms and look in the mirror every morning? I am over 50 and have dense breasts and the tumor wasn't found on mammo or ultrasound. I read that 90% of BC are found by the women themselves, so your comments about mammo were not well taken either. The truth is, no one really knows why things happen the way they do and one day you might have no lump and the next day there will be one and it's not just b/c we're all lazy.
Here's a link to a video that I found really interesting about the pink ribbon campaign. It's a bit of a tear jerker, and not entirely positive or negative on the subject. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNMELBDFuJY
I am very sensitive to cancer ads since my breast cancer diagnosis, everytime I here the word cancer on tv or the radio it feels like someone is scraping their nails on chalkboard. the cancer center of america runs ads constantly for all types of it, prostate, lung, breast and leukemia etc.
The Cancer Center of America ads bother me because I suspect the majority of the population can't afford it.
As for ovarian cancer, I had a scare with that at the same time I had my breast cancer scare. A CT scan said "can't rule out ovarian cancer." I went through quite an ordeal for a few months trying to find out if I had ovarian cancer. After an MRI, a gyne oncologist said there was no indication I had it. He referred me to a laparoscopic specialist to go in an look around, but that specialist said there was no justification to just "go look" and kept pushing for a hysterectomy. Since my bladder is scared to my uterus, I declined because I do't want to end up incontinent until necessary. If he was going to take out my ovaries, I would have gone for it. I saw no reason to yank out my uterus just so someone could go look. I get so frustrated with healthcare.
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