Guest guest Posted June 8, 2006 Report Share Posted June 8, 2006 this is interesting. So why is it that a woman with a history of breast crancer even mess around with a mamo? Why not just do routine ultrasounds and go from there? ruthiema36 wrote: My understanding is that a tumor has to be 1 cm. in size to be pickedup by a mammogram, about 2 to be picked up by self exam. To reach 1cm. it has been lurking in your breast for about 10 years. Anotherway to put it, on average it takes one cancer cell 100 days to double,another for the two to double and so on. Ruth __________________________________________________ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 8, 2006 Report Share Posted June 8, 2006 My Tumors (3) were not found on Mammo or Ultra Sound. I had been having Mommo's faithfully for 11 yrs prior to my Dx in Feb. 2005. I also was not able to feel it either nor did my Doctor. What they did find on Ultra Sound was a cyst, and I could probably wait and have another Mommo in 6 months to re-check, I didn't wait, and suprise on the excisional biopsy it was Cancer 3 cm tumor. I had an MRM on right side with 2 other tumors removed 5cm and 6 cm, also 5+ nodes of 16 removed. I am ER/PR- but HER2/ +++ which makes the cancer very aggressive and grow at a faster rate. My understanding is that a tumor has to be 1 cm. in size to be pickedup by a mammogram, about 2 to be picked up by self exam. To reach 1cm. it has been lurking in your breast for about 10 years. Anotherway to put it, on average it takes one cancer cell 100 days to double,another for the two to double and so on. Vicki K. & My YorkiesLizzie, Annie(PMR Rescue), Molly Moo (Rescue From Korea), Tee Tee (PMR Rescue) My Sweet Shayleigh 10-18-00--03-31-03My Little Audrey (PMR Rescue) 09-91--10-06-03Our Fur Kid's Biopsy Dx'd 3-23-05 w/ 3 cm tumor Age 48 1/2 (turned 49 July) MRM 4-5-05 w/ 2 tumor's 5cm, and 6 cm (right side) 5+/16 nodes Stage 3 ER/PR-, Her2/neu ++ 3.42 confirmed by FISH ki67 78%Begin Chemo 5-2-05 4XAC Dose Dense , 4X Abraxane Dose Dense (ended August 05)28 Rad's ended October 13 2005Started Herceptin Weekly August 2005 for one year, will be done this August 2006. Had a Simple mastectomy left side after Mamo showed incresed micro-calcifications. Jan. 17 2006. Breast Cancer SURVIVOR --Dx'd 4-2005 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 8, 2006 Report Share Posted June 8, 2006 My Tumors (3) were not found on Mammo or Ultra Sound. I had been having Mommo's faithfully for 11 yrs prior to my Dx in Feb. 2005. I also was not able to feel it either nor did my Doctor. What they did find on Ultra Sound was a cyst, and I could probably wait and have another Mommo in 6 months to re-check, I didn't wait, and suprise on the excisional biopsy it was Cancer 3 cm tumor. I had an MRM on right side with 2 other tumors removed 5cm and 6 cm, also 5+ nodes of 16 removed. I am ER/PR- but HER2/ +++ which makes the cancer very aggressive and grow at a faster rate. My understanding is that a tumor has to be 1 cm. in size to be pickedup by a mammogram, about 2 to be picked up by self exam. To reach 1cm. it has been lurking in your breast for about 10 years. Anotherway to put it, on average it takes one cancer cell 100 days to double,another for the two to double and so on. Vicki K. & My YorkiesLizzie, Annie(PMR Rescue), Molly Moo (Rescue From Korea), Tee Tee (PMR Rescue) My Sweet Shayleigh 10-18-00--03-31-03My Little Audrey (PMR Rescue) 09-91--10-06-03Our Fur Kid's Biopsy Dx'd 3-23-05 w/ 3 cm tumor Age 48 1/2 (turned 49 July) MRM 4-5-05 w/ 2 tumor's 5cm, and 6 cm (right side) 5+/16 nodes Stage 3 ER/PR-, Her2/neu ++ 3.42 confirmed by FISH ki67 78%Begin Chemo 5-2-05 4XAC Dose Dense , 4X Abraxane Dose Dense (ended August 05)28 Rad's ended October 13 2005Started Herceptin Weekly August 2005 for one year, will be done this August 2006. Had a Simple mastectomy left side after Mamo showed incresed micro-calcifications. Jan. 17 2006. Breast Cancer SURVIVOR --Dx'd 4-2005 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 8, 2006 Report Share Posted June 8, 2006 There are some people who says that cancer is associated with some emotionally trumatic event that happend in our lives in the past. A shock of some kind that sets one cell to loose control and becoming a cancer cell. I don't know if I believe this, I tend to be a very skeptical person, but the fact is that if I try to guess what happened in my life around the time the first cancer cell showed up, I could very well see the cause of the cancer. I guess it could help so that I learn to deal with this emmotional traumas instead of internalizing them and harming myself. Like I said, don't know how much of this is true and how much it can help. Hugs ruthiema36 wrote: My understanding is that a tumor has to be 1 cm. in size to be pickedup by a mammogram, about 2 to be picked up by self exam. To reach 1cm. it has been lurking in your breast for about 10 years. Anotherway to put it, on average it takes one cancer cell 100 days to double,another for the two to double and so on. Ruth __________________________________________________ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 8, 2006 Report Share Posted June 8, 2006 Mammography works well, providing the breasts are very fatty. The fat serves as a back drop which tumors and caldifications can show up against. If the breast contains dense tissue tumors can hide behind the density. However, mammography can pick up suspicious calcifications in dense tissue, wellll sometimes. My tumor, which was not obvious even on a cad read mammogram, showed up clearly on ultrasound. Most insurance companies will not cover ultrasound unless a mammogram has been done first, the " gold " standard don't ya know. I think all young women and us oldies with dense tissue should be given both. Ultra sound only costs a few dollars more than a mammogram. Ruth My understanding is that a tumor has to be 1 cm. in size to be picked > up by a mammogram, about 2 to be picked up by self exam. To reach 1 > cm. it has been lurking in your breast for about 10 years. Another > way to put it, on average it takes one cancer cell 100 days to double, > another for the two to double and so on. > Ruth > > > > > > __________________________________________________ > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 10, 2006 Report Share Posted June 10, 2006 I was just diagnosed on April 26, 2006, after finding a set of lumps in late January, and have been very active on the G. Komen message board and did a few dozen hours of research on line and at various libraries before my surgery to remove a cluster of 3 contiguous tumors measuring 3 cm and axillary dissection for postitive lymph nodes at Mayo on May 10th. With that said, here' my understanding. Mammograms can pick up tumors in the millimeters stage not centimeter stage. My metric sense isn't grgreat but basically 10 millimeters = 1 cm. 2.5 cm = inch. So a mammogram CAN pick up very small tumors. BUT it doesn't pick up all tumors. It sees shadows of the tumor. So the lump(s) can hide. For example, I discovered my lump during self exam when it was about the size of a dime, um, say 1 cm or so. My mammogram in September 2004 didn't show it NOR did my mammogram on February 8th, 2006 WHEN I and anyone else could easily feel it because the first of them that I discovered was very close to the surface. Because the tumor seemed to be growing and changing, I kept following up. By my dr appt on April 7th, I could feel 3 distinct lumps in the same area at various depths. These did show up on the ultrasound and did show up on the MRI. On May 10th the tumor area was 3 cm, and I had 5 of 20 nodes positive. My conclusion is that we need to be watchful with ALL tools available. If I hadn't found the lump myself and just had the mammogram, I would have been reassured by the " benign " mammogram report and the tumor wouldn't have been discovered until I got around to an annual physical, by which time it could have doubled again by your calculations. From the end of January until May 10th gave the cancer cells in my body plenty of time to double and to mestatasize to the lymph nodes. I think we must be watchful for ourselves, use all of the tools available, and be assertive in following up when our own " gut " tells us something is wrong. Nope, self exam can't and doesn't find all tumors; nope, mammograms can't and don't see all tumors; but we owe it to ourselves and our families to do what we can to identify if there is a problem and get treatment as appropriate. .... NOW, I'm off my soapbox for the moment SharonK in Crystal, MN a newbie to this board --- thanks for the invitation nne > > My understanding is that a tumor has to be 1 cm. in size to be picked > up by a mammogram, about 2 to be picked up by self exam. To reach 1 > cm. it has been lurking in your breast for about 10 years. Another > way to put it, on average it takes one cancer cell 100 days to double, > another for the two to double and so on. > Ruth > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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