Good Riddence Pinktober ~ Rant

Barb- I feel the same as you do.  I wasn't even old enough to be getting regular mammos but I felt the lump.  Mammo did NOT pick up the lump-even when everyone could feel it.  I know that mammos catch some people's cancer but I was also stage III when diagnosed and had no risk factors.  I thought I was safe.  HA!

I agree-we need more research!  I am also happy to bid October a farewell.

I had an ultrasound of my lump when I found it, was told it was "nothing to worry about" and I was sent on my way. I had no idea that they ever got it wrong. Yet there are so many women on these boards (many Stage 3 unfortunately) that are lulled into a false sense of security by believing that screening methods are 100% reliable.I even remember saying to my Husband that they don't make mistakes about things like that. (haha)

Knowing what I know now, I cannot believe I didn't push for a biopsy when i first found my lump, but I truly didn't believe they missed things. I wish Pink Awareness Month had made me aware of this. It wouldn't have stopped me having cancer, but I would have been treated a year earlier, and probably not at Stage 3.

I had 10 years of mammograms that showed nothing. I found my 10 cm+ ILC. ILC is harder to detect..even the digital mammogram and ultra sound showed only a 2.5cm mass, MRI showed 8.5cm.....I think most if not all of America is "Aware"...use some of that Pinktober cash to train the folks reading the mammograms....collect all the ones that were deemed negative and really were not....and study those....or make something other than mammograms the standard...

I had a clean mammo in Jan 09.  Stage III by summer.  Although I was told I had dense breasts, I was never told that it might make it very difficult for mammos to find any tumors.  You're right.  Mammos can provide a false sense of security, leading to potentially deadly results.

A mammo found my cancer but I hate all this pink merchandise!  Pink used to be my favorite color.  Now all it does is remind me I have BC.  I can't even wear it now.  I couldn't even get away from it when I shipped a package at UPS last week.  They had a pink cowboy boot ( I'm in Texas) all decorated for donations to BC.

my very first mammo caught my bc.  there was no lump to be felt by me or my bs, just a sort of thickening.  a compression mammo and us verified the mircocalcs.  what i find interesting is the the mammos, the us and even the mri didn't accurately show the size of it.  mri said 2.3 cm and it ended up being 3.5.

anyway that was a year ago.  yeah i got wind of something bad coming down the road during pinktober.  needless to say when i scheduled my annual mammo for my remaining girl i did not do it for this month.  it'll be next month.

i'm tired of the pink.  i'm tired of everything having a freaking pink ribbon on it.  i'm pretty sure that we are all freaking aware.  they need to get busy on finding out what causes ppl to get it.  period.

wow do i sound cranky or what??

~M

I have been needing a place to rant as well but haven't had the courage to do it.  I had a "clear" mammogram on May 10.  It was the first time I didn't have to have a follow up with ultrasound or anything.  I was so excited!  When I found my 4+ cm lump in August, I didn't go to the doctor, after all I just had a clear mammogram.  I knew if I went to the doctor they would send me for another mammogram and I would have to pay for it since I already had my one for this year.  In addition, I found the mass about the same time I started my period and I have a history of dense breasts and fibroid cysts. In addition, BC is supposed to feel like a small pea, be hard and immovable.  My BC felt more like a piece broken off of a Hershey bar and moved freely.   I totally agree that Breast Cancer Awareness month should focus more on making women aware that changes in your breasts need to be checked by means other than a mammogram - even if you can think of 10,000 reasons to ignore the lump. 

While I too hate pink - and always have - pink brings me some comfort and security too.  I had a right mastectomy but have a D-cup  breast on the left side.  I am not a candidate for reconstruction as I still have radiation in my future.  My mastectomy incision is still very sore and wearing a prosthetic is very uncomfortable.  Somehow, I feel that wearing my pink ribbon pin explains to gawkers my asymmetrical appearance without having to answer questions or explain.  I guess it is one of the many burdens that go with this horrible disease.

All of you ladies on this board have helped me more than words can express.  You inform, support and make the world a better place!  I don't feel so alone or isolated knowing you are all just a few kestrokes away!

Susan

Were your mammograms digital?

Were they performed by a dedicated breast imaging center that performs over 10000 mammograms per year? 

These factors can mean the difference between a false negative and a positive result.

Nothing detected my tumor either and I with huge family history of ca was the most on top of her breast health...well it got me here !!!Dense fiber cystic breast disease never biopsied I TRUSTED my phys. and mammographers.

The only good lump is in a jar !

I participated in my first Run For the Cure  this year( I walked).

Glad Oct is over ...YEP !

ml

Cheryl

Two comments...

1.  My mom died of pancreatic cancer three years ago last month and I was furious that there was (and really is) no significant funding or awareness of the cancer that takes lives almost immediately after diagnosis.  I felt that "pink" took hope away from her.

2.  I was diagnosed w/ breast cancer one month ago and just had my mastectomy.  Now, I am grateful (and feeling really hypocritical) that there is so much recognition and funding behind what we have.  It did suck to be diagnosed during Breast Cancer Awareness month.  I could never escape.  I would open my carton of eggs and their was a pink ribbon on each one.  Every time I would go to Dominick's they would ask if I wanted to make a donation to Breast Cancer funding.  I bought Mike's Hard Lemonade....of couse they had pink lemonade. 

Barb- sorry I misread your post. I thought that the cancer was in the microcalc breast.

 My dad also died of pancreatic cancer as have about 4-5 of my friends parents. For pancreatic cancer, there is no good diagnostic test for early detection and usually by the time symptoms appear it is very advanced. For BC, because there is a diagnostic tool available (mammo), even if not always accurate, and you can sometimes feel or see breast changes (as opposed to an organ that can't be like the pancreas), there is a better possiblity of early detection and hopefully becoming NED or extending your life significantly  I also think that because it often strikes women in the prime of life with kids and teens, it gets more attention than a disease that primarily affects older people with grown kids. A lot of the bc awareness stuff also sprung up to convince women that there was nothing shameful about talking about cancer in your breasts. I don't think people remember how much more open we are about these things now. And there are people who figure, well if I have cancer, I'll die so why should I let them cut my breast off? Knowing there is hope is important for those people to stay on top of their screenings. I do think its time however to move most funding away from 'awareness' to research dollars.

 Do people really think bc is girly and pink and pretty? I'm one of those people who heard cancer and my blood ran cold.