Wanda Sykes Had Double Mastectomy

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Thatgirl
Thatgirl Member Posts: 276
edited June 2014 in Black Women or Men With Breast Cancer
Wanda Sykes Had Double Mastectomy
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  • Thatgirl
    Thatgirl Member Posts: 276
    edited September 2011

    Comedian Wanda Sykes revealed that she got a double mastectomy after doctors found abnormal cells inside her breast duct. Her decision to take such an aggressive treatment is a matter of some controversy.

    Sykes was diagnosed with DCIS, ductal carcinoma in situ. The controversy is because some doctors don't think it needs aggressive treatment and should just be checked on a regular basis.  Other experts point out that some women -- especially those with the BRCA mutation, which may increase the risk of cancer -- may elect to have surgery.

    "DCIS is basically zero-stage cancer, but cancer is cancer," said the actress.

    While Sykes is correct about that, the decision about what to do is not always simple. In low-grade DCIS, there are abnormal cells inside the lining of the breast duct. But it is confined there, and in up to 80 percent of cases, may not ever cause any illness.

    In the other 20-30 percent of cases, those cells can get out of the breast duct into other parts of the body.

    "Well, a DCIS hasn't broken through the wall of the milk duct," said breast surgeon Deanna Attai. "It's also sometimes thought of as a curable breast cancer. The problem is though, these cells can potentially develop into invasive breast cancer. We just don't know which women will progress and which will stay at this very low-grade cancer stage."

    Some women decide with their doctors to wait and see, and go in for regular checkups to monitor the cells.

    Others, such as Sykes, decide to forgo any risk and get a double mastectomy.

    Though, there is still a 1-3 percent chance of the cancer returning even after the breast is removed, Attai said.

    Recent studies show that, for some women, lumpectomies can lead to a cure as often as mastectomies, without as many possible complications.

    In the end, it's a personal decision based on a patient's history.

    Patients should consider the size of the abnormality, its location, medical history, personal factors, and seek as many opinions as necessary before making a choice about treatment

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  • LizinKS
    LizinKS Member Posts: 65
    edited September 2011

    I watched Wanda today as well. When Ellen said Wanda had faced a serious challenge in her life, I just knew she had been diagnosed with breast cancer. She did say that many women in her family had gotten breast cancer, so perhaps  she was BRCA 1 or -2 positive, though she didn't say. As you wisely say, there is no one-size-fits-all decision. I am glad that the pathology lab that examined her breast tissue, which was removed during breast-reduction surgery, found the DCIS. I think Wanda is hilariously funny and am glad to know it is fairly likely that she'll be around to make us laugh for a long time.

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  • EnglishMajor
    EnglishMajor Member Posts: 2,495
    edited September 2011
    Sorry Wanda Sykes has DCIS. Glad she has an excellent prognosis. But she's not quite right when she says her BMX means "a zero percent chance of getting breast cancer : http://ihatebreastcancer.wordpress.com/2011/09/27/dear-wanda-sykes-unfortunately-a-bmx-isnt-a-breast-cancer-cure-either/
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  • LuvRVing
    LuvRVing Member Posts: 4,516
    edited September 2011

    I saw her on Ellen and caught that "0% chance" comment, too.  That's one of the reasons why awareness goals need to change. 

    Ellen is another avenue for getting some "truth" out there for breast cancer.  I wonder if she would be receptive to doing a story on MBC during October. 

    Michelle

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