Mammograms and MAJOR advise

Thursday, September 14th. My first mammogram ever. Although I was thankful for being given such an early appointment, I was dreading what was about to be done to me. Actually, I had no idea what they were about to do to me, aside from what the odd aunt had told me.

I stepped nervously into the mammography room at the CBR hospital. The nurse told me to take off my shirt and bra (which I was getting used to by this point), and she began to stick little silver balls that looked like bebe pellets first on my nipples, then on the area around the tumor. I'll tell this in detail so all you young girls who are reading this understand what a mammogram is-- I know I didn't up until a month ago. She then directed me over to a large machine, where the actual pictures are taken. Basically the mammogram machine is like 2 flat pieces of plexi glass that move in a vertical (up and down) direction towards one another. You first lay your breast on the bottom piece (its sort of like a table) and then the nurse presses a button that causes the second piece to move downward onto the breast. She moves the 2 'tables' together (your breast is in between them) until your breast is as flat as itcan be.It ends up looking something like a pancake. I won't lie ... it feels pretty brutal. It's more uncomfortable than anything, just to know that your boob is being squished in ways you never before thought possible. Once your boob is in squish position, the nurse runs over and presses another button that takes the pictures. Normally they do this procedure 4 times (top and bottom of each breast, then sides of each breast), but they did it to me 7 times because they had to take extra pictures of the tumor.

Aside from a little discomfort, the mammogram really isn't that big a deal. Of all the things I've had done to me so far, this was probably the easiest.

Once this was done, I was on my way ... I thought. I had to wait in the waiting room until they were sure the pictures came out clear enough to be used in the operating room. The nurse came out about 10 minutes later to inform me that I would have to also have an ultrasound done, because the mammogram pictures may not have been clear enough. So, after another hour's wait, I was finally taken in to have my second ultrasound done this month.

This is what is scary: First of all, doctors don't recognize women under 40 as being high risk for breast cancer (especially not at 25). In addition to this, women under 40 often have very dense breasts, which makes the tissues hard to read in a mammogram. Many times, if you are a young woman and manage to somehow get a mammogram, the cancer often goes undetected. This is why they needed to do an ultrasound for me. What I'm saying is that when you are a young woman under 40, detecting breast cancer is up to you! No one is going to find it for you! Self breast exams are crucial and it is also crucial that you have your doctor do a breast exam during your yearly obgyn (and make sure he/she is thorough!). The problem is that usually when you find it yourself, it is already a cancerous, invasive tumor. I'll explain: There are many stages of breast cancer, which usually develop over several years. First, you have abormal cells. Then, the cells mutate abnormally. Then, non-invasive or in-situ cancer forms. This is cancer that is contained in one area, has not yet broke away from that area or spread, and is not immdiately threatening. However, eventually this cancer can (and normally will) erupt and move outside that once-contained area and begin to spread. This is usually when a tumor is felt. With ductal carcinoma, the most common form of breast cancer and the kind I had, the non-invasive or in-situ cancer is confined to the ducts in the breast. Once these cancerous cells break away from the duct, they then become invasive, invading the surrounding tissue in thebreast and forming tumors. Mammograms can often detect in-situ cancers before they become life-threatening. However, when you're my age, there are few ways of knowing you have breast cancer until it is has become invasive.

The good news is that if you find the tumor quick, there is still lots of hope! Even though it has become invasive, the sooner you find it, the less chances it has of spreading outside the breast. In my case, I managed to detect the tumor shortly after it was formed, which will likely save my life.

So for all younger women reading this, take the advise I gaveyou above. And don't feel that just because you are young, you are scott-free!!! It happened to me and it's happening to lots of otherwomen our age. For all women over 40 who are reading this, take advantage of the services available to you. You may have the ability to nip cancer in the bud before it becomes life-threatening.