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Sheila's Story

Name: Sheila
State: Oregon
Date of Diagnosis: March 8, 2008
Age at Diagnosis: 39
Stage of Diagnosis: 2B
Time from "normal" mammogram to diagnosis: 'Happy Gram' letter reported normal the day after invasive cancer found by biopsy
How was cancer detected?: By ultrasound

I found the lump myself as I removed my cat’s claw from my breast – it felt different than others that I had felt over the years. I had numerous breast exams prior to my diagnosis, as my husband and I were trying to conceive to no avail. Having a strange feeling that I needed to get this lump out, I had to fight for a biopsy which was finally ordered along with a mammogram first. The biopsy was positive for invasive cancer – and pathology later confirmed an aggressive Triple Negative cancer. My mammography report, which stated "normal', arrived the day after the tragic news of my cancer - my cancer concealed within my dense tissue.

I would be dead if I took the advice of my doctor to NOT have a biospy.

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AYD In The News

What is Dense Breast Tissue?

How Do I Know if I Have Dense Breast Tissue?

What Do I Do if I Have Dense Breast Tissue?

Are You Dense? Fact #1:
Breast density is one of the strongest predictors of the failure of mammography screening to detect cancer.
Are You Dense? Fact #2:
Two-thirds of pre-menopausal women and 40% of post-menopausal women have dense breast tissue.
Are You Dense? Fact #3:
Adding more sensitive tests to mammography significantly increase detection of invasive cancers that are small and node negative.
Are You Dense? Fact #4:
American College of Radiology describes women with "Dense Breast Tissue" as having a higher than average risk of Breast Cancer.
Are You Dense? Fact #5:
While a mammogram detects 98% of cancers in women with fatty breasts, it finds only 48% in women with dense breasts.
Are You Dense? Fact #6:
A woman at average risk and a woman at high risk have an EQUAL chance of having their cancer masked by mammogram.
Are You Dense? Fact #7:
Women with dense breasts who had breast cancer have a four times higher risk of recurrence than women with less-dense breasts.
Are You Dense? Fact #8:
A substantial proportion of Breast Cancer can be attributed to high breast density alone.
Are You Dense? Fact #9:
Cancer turns up five times more often in women with extremely dense breasts than those with the most fatty tissue.
Are You Dense? Fact #10
There are too many women who are unaware of their breast density, believe their “Happy Gram” when it reports no significant findings and are at risk of receiving a later stage cancer diagnosis.