"Be Your Own Advocate"

by Sue Martori

Young women often think when they find a mass in their breasts around the time of their menstrual cycle, that it's probably a cyst. Oftentimes that is the case. However, occasionally, the mass is examined by their physician who suggests to them a "follow-up" exam later down the road, when in fact, the patient should be followed up immediately with a "diagnostic" exam instead. This can result in a delay of diagnosis. This coupled with the fact that breast cancer is much more aggressive in the younger patient, can cause the disease to be detected in an advanced state, resulting in later stage breast cancer. In these cases, according to Dr. Hahn, the cancer is more likely to become a larger mass, that has spread to the lymph nodes.
Each of us must become our own "patient advocate".

Please refer to the website for more information on this topic:
http://www.mdanderson.org/diseases/breastcancer/

Beneficiaries

Please support these Breast Cancer foundations