| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Kaylynn44 |
Posted - October 18 2004 : 10:58:17 PM
As many of y'all know, October is breast cancer awareness month. Ladies, please take time to do a self-exam. If you feel any little lump, please go to your doctor. It could be a matter of life and death!!!
My stepson's wife found a lump about seven months ago, but she didn't think that it was any big deal. She didn't tell anyone. Now, the lump is almost as large as her breast. She started bleeding from the nipple, so she went to the doctor, and now she is going to have to have a mastectomy on her right breast, followed by radiation and chemotherapy.
I am just so sad right now because someone that I love dearly is going through so much pain. I don't want anyone else to go through this, so please make sure to do a self exam every month!!! Thanks!!!
Love,
Kay |
| 14 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| caitlin |
Posted - November 04 2004 : 11:50:37 AM
quote:
Originally posted by Kaylynn44
I want to thank everybody for their prayers, because Becky came through her surgery like a trooper!!! And the best news that we could get is that the doctor was able to get it all, and she won't have to go through radiation and chemo!!!!! The surgery took longer than usual because he tried to save her breast, but in the end, he had to go ahead and remove it because she is such a small girl and the mass was so large. But we are just so happy that she pulled through with flying colors. Got to go. I want to make sure that her house is clean when she gets home. I don't want her to have to worry about housework when she gets home. Thanks again everybody!!! I love y'all!!!!!
Love,
Kay
That is fantastic news! 
Here's to a speedy recovery!  |
| Kaylynn44 |
Posted - November 04 2004 : 07:52:19 AM
I want to thank everybody for their prayers, because Becky came through her surgery like a trooper!!! And the best news that we could get is that the doctor was able to get it all, and she won't have to go through radiation and chemo!!!!! The surgery took longer than usual because he tried to save her breast, but in the end, he had to go ahead and remove it because she is such a small girl and the mass was so large. But we are just so happy that she pulled through with flying colors. Got to go. I want to make sure that her house is clean when she gets home. I don't want her to have to worry about housework when she gets home. Thanks again everybody!!! I love y'all!!!!!
Love,
Kay |
| caitlin |
Posted - October 28 2004 : 4:42:34 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Kaylynn44
Kate,
You have made me feel so much better about Becky. I am going to think only positive thoughts for her. She has to have her mastectomy on November 3rd. I am trying to be upbeat for her, but sometimes it is hard because I know that she is so scared, and so am I. Thank you again dear Kate for your words of encouragement.
Caitlin, I am so sorry to hear about your friend. That is what worries me about Becky. Just wondering if it was caught too late.
Thank you for thinking of Becky!!! Y'all are the BEST!!!
Love,
Kay
Thank you Kay. My friend's story is so similar to your Becky's. She found a lump, ignored it, finally went to the doctor and they dismissed it because of her age, several months later she was diagnosed at stage three. All this at such a yound age.
I just keep thinking of that amazing doctor who self diagnosed herself with breast cancer while being ice bound at the South Pole and survived. So, as Kate says, stay positive! They also say that laughter is an amazing healer.
My prayers are with you and your family.  |
| Karen W |
Posted - October 27 2004 : 5:21:19 PM
Well, this is a subject close to my heart and yet it's hard for me to know what to say. As of this coming December I will be a 15 year breast cancer survivor. My mom hit that mark this past April. Thanks to my mom insisting on my having a mammogram that year my cancer was detected very early on. I was 39 and couldn't believe it was happening to me, especially since we had just gone through it with mom. I had great faith and trust in my doctors, which I think is very important. I would say if you don't feel that way about your doctors, find others. I also feel that a sense of humor and positive attitude are key elements to fighting the fight against cancer. I have a cousin who also waited too long to get in to be checked after finding a lump a little over a year ago, but as of now she is doing very well. I hope that will give you some hope, Kay! My family has lost too many members to various cancers and my mom is fighting ovarian cancer at this time, so my heart goes out to everyone who is facing this fight, whether it be themselves, a family member or a friend. Please know that my thoughts are with you all!
Karen
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| Kaylynn44 |
Posted - October 27 2004 : 2:54:13 PM
Kate,
You have made me feel so much better about Becky. I am going to think only positive thoughts for her. She has to have her mastectomy on November 3rd. I am trying to be upbeat for her, but sometimes it is hard because I know that she is so scared, and so am I. Thank you again dear Kate for your words of encouragement.
Caitlin, I am so sorry to hear about your friend. That is what worries me about Becky. Just wondering if it was caught too late.
Thank you for thinking of Becky!!! Y'all are the BEST!!!
Love,
Kay |
| Kate |
Posted - October 24 2004 : 12:20:18 PM
Bless you, Bookworm, Caitlin… Bless yer cotton pickin’ little hearts for saying such sweet words!! But… I’m doing really well with this thing and heck, I’ve had so many surgeries now it’s becoming a little boring!  Another surgery is just another good excuse to leave the housework for a few weeks! Really! There’s ALWAYS an ‘up’ side, if you just look at it from the right perspective!! 
Seriously - I got SO MUCH support and positive thoughts from all my friends on this Board (and another that I visit) and it was all that positive energy that made me feel, ‘I can do this’. When you have so many caring and loving people behind you, that really makes you strong, and so able to face what’s there in front of you – and you can deal with it. So… give yourselves a pat on the back, my dear friends!! You surely deserve it! You guys gave me the spirit to fight this thing.
From my experience I’d say to others facing this challenging thing in their lives, “Stay POSITIVE!!! Gather all the positive thoughts, prayers and good wishes from your family and friends, wrap it around you and use it to make yourself STRONG! Use that positive, loving energy that’s being sent to you – and GET ON WITH IT!!! ;o)
Seriously… I swear that being ‘positive’ is the key. The more positive you are, the healthier you are and it allows all those interferons and cytotoxins to get working!! BUT – it’s the love and caring that friends shower you with when you most need it, that gives you the key to fighting – and getting through - the Cancer thing.
I always feel a little… hesitant, at discussing my own personal cancer experience in a public forum. However, I just feel it’s SOOO important to remind everyone that each time you send up a prayer or a loving thought to help a Cancer sufferer mentioned on this Board, you are adding more positivity to their mental attitude and giving them the strength to fight back. BELIEVE ME, IT MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE!
But it’s also vitally important to remind ladies that – you aren’t just looking for lumps. You aren’t just getting mammograms and forgetting that, important as these are, they aren’t telling the whole story. You have to examine even the minutest corners (???) of your breasts – make sure that the parts you can’t see on the mammograms, are healthy too.
I just feel it’s important to remind ladies that it’s early detection, making sure you do all those self-examinations, get those mammograms done and get the Doctors checking all the places that mammograms can’t reach, that will REALLY make the difference between a good prognosis – and a poor one. Don’t leave ANYTHING that seems ‘lumpy’, alone! Don’t say “well, it’s just a TEENY bit ‘inverted’”. DON’T say ‘it’s just my imagination’. Or worse, don’t say ‘it’s NOTHING. It would only be bothering the Doctor’. And for goodness sake, don’t say “everything SEEMS okay. I don’t need to have that mammogram”. As I said before, ‘if in doubt, HAVE IT CHECKED OUT’!! Better still, just get it routinely checked professionally because it’s a good thing to do.
Kay is right – this is ‘Awareness’ month. But… you ladies have to be aware EVERY month!! And you have to insist that your doctors cover ALL your bases.
As a famous man once said:
"It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
*I* am the master of my fate,
*I* am the captain of my soul."
Yes, I am responsible for my health. You are responsible for your health. Don’t leave it to chance… don’t think for one moment that it won’t happen to you. The ‘odds’ are one in three that it COULD.
BUT - I pray for each one of you that it isn’t. Stay safe, my friends. |
| caitlin |
Posted - October 23 2004 : 2:35:01 PM
Kay, I am also so sorry to hear the bad news. I wish her the best. 
As you all know, my friend died recently because she too detected her breast cancer too late. Cancer in general is a scary thing.
My dear Kate, for you to go through all of this pains me so because I know of no kinder soul than yours. I wish you all the best.
Here is your pink ribbon!
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| Bookworm |
Posted - October 23 2004 : 1:26:10 PM
Kate, I didn't know you were dealing with this. I'm so glad to hear that things are going well, and that the surgeries are ALMOST over. Your wonderful spirit shines through your message, and I hope and pray that all those who confront this obstacle in their lives are able to meet it as you've done. |
| Kate |
Posted - October 23 2004 : 1:12:07 PM
Hey there, Ladies,
Highlighting this problem is a good thing, Kay - I think ladies need to be reminded that vigilence can be the difference between a successful or poor prognosis of Breast Cancer. Keep self-examining and if in doubt, have it checked out!
Yes, mammograms ARE a very important part of the 'catching it early' process of Breast cancer. HOWEVER, I think it's REALLY IMPORTANT TO BRING TO WOMEN'S ATTENTION! Mammograms DO NOT ALWAYS indicate the presence of cancer. Mammograms are great for showing up lumps, cysts, whatever... But what if you don't HAVE a lump? What if your breast looks normal and FEELS normal when you palpate it during checks?? I hate to say it but - that's no indication you don't have a malignancy...
In my own case, I had a symptom which can indicate cancer. It turned out that it was a symptom of a relatively minor thing BUT in the process of working out what that condition was, my Breast Specialist discovered I had extensively spread cancer in the linings of my lactiferous ducts, in one of my breasts. She told me that normally there are NO SYMPTOMS of this condition, it doesn't show up in a mammogram and consequently, TOO OFTEN it is not discovered until it's too late. Too often she has had to tell her patients 'I can only offer you palliative care'. It must be noted - I HAD A MAMMOGRAM only 4 months previously and had been sent 'the letter' giving me the all clear!!
I did have to have a mastectomy a year and a half ago - and I am still undergoing surgery to reconstruct everything. I hoped last week's surgery would be my last but it seems I need one more to get everything 'ship shape'. I can do that! I'm alive. 
I am not trying to scare anyone. I simply want to remind ladies that MAMMOGRAMS that are deemed 'all clear' do not necessarily mean that you have no cancer. It doesn't do to be complacent!! I beg you - DO PLEASE make sure, when you get your results of your mammograms, that you remind your doctor that that's only half the story - you'd like to be sure the OTHER, non-symptomatic areas are also clear!!
Unfortunately, 'luck' plays a part in all this. But... try to reduce yer 'odds'! Do your monthly self-checks, get regular mammograms and make sure your doctor is thorough. Hey, YOU are the one in control of your health. Make that Doc. work for his/her money!! 
Now - good luck to all you ladies! And God Bless those that are fighting this terrible condition at this moment.
 (yes indeed, Kay! Oh for a pink ribbon! ) |
| Kaylynn44 |
Posted - October 22 2004 : 7:12:41 PM
Thanks WW. I will check this site out. It may or may not help, but just in case, I will make sure to click. 
Love,
Kay |
| Wilderness Woman |
Posted - October 21 2004 : 08:23:10 AM
I received this by email just recently. It appears to be legitimate, so I would like to encourage everyone -- ladies and gents -- to do this. Go to the website once a day and click on the pink button. Also copy and paste into an email and send it on to your friends and family.
"The Breast Cancer site is having trouble getting enough people to click on it daily to meet their quota of donating at least one free mammogram a day to an underprivileged woman.
It takes less than a minute to go to their site and click on "Fund Free Mammograms" for free (pink window in the middle). This doesn't cost you a thing. Their corporate sponsors/advertisers use the number of daily visits to donate mammogram in exchange for advertising."
Here's the web site:
www.thebreastcancersite.com |
| Wilderness Woman |
Posted - October 19 2004 : 08:39:43 AM
Kay, I am also sorry to hear this bad news. I sincerely hope and pray that the treatments are not too late. Best wishes to her!
Breast cancer is no longer just an old woman's disease. More and more younger women are being diagnosed. I have a cousin who is around 40 who was just diagnosed. Fortunately, they feel they have found it early enough that she can be cured.
Ladies... of all ages... it is so important to pay attention to any lump you find, no matter how tiny you think it is. Go to a doctor immediately! The chances are good that it is nothing... just a cyst (as I have had!) or calcified tissue. But it could be something much more serious. It could do much more than make you just lose a breast... it could threaten your very life.
<In lieu of pink ribbons> |
| Kaylynn44 |
Posted - October 19 2004 : 07:44:02 AM
Thanks Bookworm for mentioning having a mammogram. Having an annual mammogram along with monthly self exams is very important!!! There is some discussion as to whether mammograms really help women under 40. You would think that a mammogram would benefit any woman, but then again I'm no expert at these things. Becky is only 36, and that is so young to have to lose a breast. It is bad to lose a breast at any age!!! At least she has a loving and caring husband. That means alot!!! Thanks for listening!!!
Love,
Kay |
| Bookworm |
Posted - October 19 2004 : 07:05:08 AM
I'm so sorry to hear of your daughter-in-law's misfortune, Kay. Here's hoping and praying she'll have a complete and speedy recovery. You're absolutely right about the importance of self-exams, and mammograms too, for those of us of a certain age. |
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