Marin County BC Ladies out there?

jobu

I am curious how many BC patients are out there in Marin County, CA. I know we are rated with the highest incidence of breast cancer in the country. I'm curious who you are and what your stories are? Please share so we can learn from each other. Why are so many of us being diagnosed with BC?

I was diagnosed May 6, 2008 after finding a lump that itched. I live in Mill Valley.

corgigirl

Resident of San Mateo, Contra Costa and Alameda Counties at different times and diagnosed in 2006 and again in 2007 (double mastectemy in 07).  Non smoker, never drank and mom to 2 kids (and had them when I was young) and a professional woman.  I joke with other professional women that it was the photocopy machine that we all used to excess - but I have no idea why.  Good idea to see what Bay Area women have in common and especially women in Marin. 

MargaretB

I have been on the boards for a few years now and can only think of one or two women who live in Marin County but it would be interesting to see how many there are.  I live in San Mateo County.

KEW

Hi--I was raised in Marin County, I lived there until I was 24.  As a baby we lived in Tiburon, and later Novato.  My mother died of breast cancer in 1986 at 58 years old, and she had lived in Marin for about 40 years.  If you look at the County Epidemiological page it shows which parts of Marin have elevated incidences of breast cancer.

jobu

I'm so sorry to hear about your mom and now you. There definately is something going on here in Marin? I haven't had much response on this board from Marin, but I will look into it more. I will check the county epidemiological page. Thanks.

Just curious why you had a mastectomy? I am at crossroad between mastectomy and radiation myself.

 

KEW

I chose a bi-lateral because I wanted to reduce the worry, and I wanted the girls to kind of look the same.  I thought one natural and one new would kind of bother me.  It is hard though not having any sensation, sad to never have some of those great feelings again.  I had spent many years thinking about it because of my mother.  I'm glad I did because the pathology report showed DCIS in another part of my left breast, where my tumor was, and if I had a lumpectomy and radiation I probably would have ended up with a mastectomy in a couple of years anyway.  I hesitate to tell that story because it is important that we remember all of our situations are different, I don't want anyone to question their choices.  I'm still at the stage where people can freak me out about my treatment choice.  Because of my Oncotype score and other information about the biology of my tumor I'm not doing chemo, and some people have really frightened me about that choice, even though I feel good about it.  I have decided to have my ovaries out since I'm close to menopause and it feels like a good choice for me, my tumor was an estrogen addict!

I miss Marin, but it has changed so much from when I was growing up in the 60's and 70's.  I'm glad I grew up there because of its beauty and being so close to San Francisco and Berkeley. I finally moved out in 1984.  I have a water color painting of the Audobon House at Richardson Bay, by Blackie's Pasture.  Were you there when Blackie was alive.  I fed him carrot as a very little girl.

 I just remembered I know another native Marin woman who was diagnosed a couple of years ago, she was probably 43.

Thanks for the kind words about my mom, and me.  Same back to you, how's it going for you?

Melanie53

I live in Arizona now, but both my sister and I spent many years living in Marin County. She was 28 years old and living in Larkspur when she was diagnosed with breast cancer back in '81. She and I both lived in several different places in Marin. KEW, I lived in Tiburon and Novato, too. I'm sorry about your mother, and also about your diagnosis.

I moved away from the Bay Area in December '01 and was living in Arizona when I was diagnosed with DCIS in March of '07. I had spend most of the years between 1974 and 2001 living in the Bay Area. I miss it. I often wonder, though, what causes the high numbers of breast cancer in Marin.