Angels do exist. I encounter their presence often. Angels are with me in the Operating Theater, looking over my shoulder, guiding my hand, relaxing my patient as we remove the tumor. Angels are with me in the office, focusing my thoughts and comforting you as we sketch out a plan to save you from cancer. Angels are with me when I study and read my journals, opening my mind to safer and more effective ways to get rid of breast cancer.
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Read More Cancer, Surgery
Fighting breast cancer was hard. It was also unfair. Linda was only 53, she ran marathons, ate lean meats, enjoyed her vegetables and took a walk every night with her husband. So it was profoundly unfair when a spot was found on her annual screening mammogram. She had a core needle biopsy, which demonstrated a breast cancer. Although the tumor was small, it was high grade. Linda chose to remove her breast and have a mastectomy. And then she took chemotherapy.
Read more on Vaginal Dryness After Breast Cancer Can Be Treated…
Read More Breast cancer, Breast Cancer Treatment, Cancer, Chemotherapy, Conditions and Diseases, Knoxville Tennessee, Mammography, Treatment, Tumor
Nicole and her girlfriends went for their annual mammogram. It was always more fun to do it in a group. Although they were all in their young 40s and the government is trying to tell them not to have a mammogram till they turn 50, they listened to the advice of their physicians and have been getting screening mammograms since they turned 40. Nicole’s mammogram had some microcalcifications, small pieces of calcium that are deposited from breast tissue. Most often, fibrocystic breast changes can cause calcium deposits, but on occasion, the calcium can be deposited by cancer. Nicole had a core needle biopsy and was told she had Ductal Carcinoma In Situ. Nicole had breast cancer, or so she thought. Her friend Amber, who knows everything, said that Nicole did not have cancer, that DCIS is a benign growth. Well, does Nicole have cancer? Is DCIS cancer?
Yes. DCIS is cancer. DCIS can recur after excision. DCIS can transform into a malignant tumor. Cure rates are as high as 98%, but 2% still succumb to the disease. Thus, DCIS is cancer, but benign cancer, as opposed to malignant cancer, which can spread throughout the body.
Read more on DCIS: Is it Cancer?…
Read More Angelina Jolie, Breast cancer, Breast cancer screening, Breast Cancer Treatment, cancer recurrence, DCIS, Mammography
Why is chemotherapy given to cancer patients? Because chemotherapy kills cancer.
Chemotherapy is a combination of medicines that kill cancer cells by stopping their cellular division (mitosis) and “birthing” of new cancer cells. If cancer cells cannot give birth to new cancer cells, then the cancer itself will die. Chemotherapy is not very specific to cancer cells only, as chemotherapy also kills rapidly dividing healthy cells, which leads to many of the side effects of chemotherapy.
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Read More Awareness, Breast cancer, Breast Cancer Treatment, Cancer, Chemotherapy
October’s colors warm the heart like no other. As the greens of summer fade to reds and yellows, the air becomes crisp, heralding the coming months of reflection and renewal. October puts to rest the hard work of summer and initiates the inward searching of winter. We clean our lawns, wipe down our decks and gather wood for the fire. We are preparing to say thanks for the past year and to appreciate the many blessings in our lives.
In October, we listen to Moses delivering his final sermon to the Israelites as he prepares to climb Mt. Nebo and return home to God. The final chapters of Torah are read, and we can see Moses disappear up the mountain. We then turn to the beginning and recite the story of creation.
Read more on Real Men Wear Pink…
Read More American Cancer Society, Awareness, Breast cancer, Cure, emotional recovery, Imelda G. Margulies, Knoxville Tennessee, Real Men Wear Pink
Geraldine got her mammogram every year. Her first grandchild was born six years ago she wasn’t going to miss a second of her grandbaby’s life, although, the baby’s mom, Laura, had something to say about that. Geraldine just knew that her grandbaby was God’s gift to her or raising Laura, her daughter, right. And Geraldine wanted to be there for her daughter and to play with her grandbaby. So she got her mammogram every year.
Read more on My mom has breast cancer. Is it genetic? Will I get breast cancer?…
Read More Breast, Breast cancer, Breast cancer screening, Genetics, Mammography, Real Men Wear Pink
Jane is a 36-year-old mother of three just trying to make it through the day. She has children in three different schools, and the constant driving was taking a toll on her. One day, while putting on her seat belt, her left breast hurt. She thought nothing of it as she drove around town from school to ballet to soccer and to the grocery store. Then, one morning, in the shower, she noticed a lump in her breast. No one in her family, not her mother, not her sisters, not her aunts, had breast cancer. Still, she was scared. She called her physician who recommended a mammogram and ultrasound. Jane had breast cancer.
Read more on I have breast cancer. What about my ovaries?…
Read More American Cancer Society, Angelina Jolie, Awareness, Breast Cancer Treatment, cancer recurrence, Chemotherapy, Ovarian cancer, Surgery
Betsy was happy with her body. She was fashionable is a summer dress. She was relaxed in a bathing suit. She was confident in her fall sweater. She was happy, until last week. She got the phone call. Yes, that phone call, the one where the radiologist calls and tells you that you have breast cancer. Betsy was afraid. She was scared.
Read more on How a Nipple Sparing Mastectomy Can Improve Emotional Well-Being…
Read More cancer recurrence, emotional recovery, total mastectomy, total skin saving mastectomyBy competing in Knoxville’s Real Men Wear Pink 2015 campaign, I’m doing my best to make sure some amazing ladies are around for a long time to come.
Read more on Join Me This Weekend for the Real Men Wear Pink 2015 Campaign!…
Read More American Cancer Society, Real Men Wear Pink, WVLT Local 8 News
Breast cancer is an umbrella term we use to describe hundreds of different types of localized cancers. While there are five broad categories of breast cancer, each cancer is unique and requires its own, specialized treatment plan. Some cancers are more aggressive than others, which means your treatment plan may not require surgery as the first step.
Read more on The Importance of Understanding Your Her2-Positive Breast Cancer Prior to Surgery …
Read More breast cancer oncologist, general surgeon, health insurance, Her2-positive, Perjeta, tumor board