Stories
Krista wants other women to know the importance of being screened in the 40s
When I found a lump in my breast one evening before going to bed, it knocked me to my knees. My husband had encouraged me to visit our family physician that week because of how unusually tired I was, although I had not recognized the changes in my own body. As soon as I felt…
Read MoreA routine mammogram allowed Deb’s cancer to be detected early. Now she is advocating so that all women are informed about the benefits of mammograms.
In January of 2021, I received a phone call that I had to return for another mammogram and possibly an ultrasound. I have been going for my mammograms for a long time. I never missed one appointment and they always came back normal until that day in January when they found something that looked suspicious.…
Read MoreDiagnosed at age 36, Jeannine wants all women to know their density and that cancer doesn’t discriminate.
I was 32 when my hand brushed up against my right breast; a lump. I couldn’t stop touching it. I couldn’t stop obsessing about it. I called my sister who is a doctor and she assured me it was probably a cyst. Nonetheless she told me to call my doctor. I remember walking into my…
Read MoreOnly 25 when her cancer was found, Katharina wants women to know no one is too young for breast cancer.
We should probably start at the beginning: It was December 2019 when I felt the lump in my breast. My gynecologist told me I would be too young for breast cancer as I was only 25, and I don’t have any family history. But just to make sure she sent me to an ultrasound. After…
Read MoreJennifer’s doctor recommended a mammogram when she turned 40, thereby allowing for a stage 1 cancer to be detected
On January 31, 2019, I heard my doctor say, “you have breast cancer”. Say what? My eyes were wide open and filling with tears. This couldn’t be true. I had recently turned 40 and was focused on my health and wellbeing. I had lost 50lbs and was feeling the best I had in years. Getting…
Read MoreA routine mammogram led to the finding of an early-stage cancer, preventing her from needing a mastectomy and chemotherapy.
On June 10th, 2021, I went in for my routine mammogram. First thing in the morning on June 11th, I received a call from the hospital advising that further diagnostics were required as there was an area of “concern” in my right breast. A more detailed diagnostic mammogram was completed on June 25th, which was…
Read MoreErin, approaching 40, asked her GP about screening and even thought she lived in PEI, a province where women can self-refer at 40, her GP did not recommend it. Right after her 40th birthday her husband felt the lump.
I asked my GP, “At what point do I start screening for breast cancer?” I was approaching my 40th birthday and I figured that a full physical was probably something that should be reviewed. My GP’s response was that breast cancer screening and mammograms were not recommended for women until they turn 50. I passed…
Read MoreHannah had symptoms of breast cancer but stopped asking for imaging because she was continuously dismissed.
I was 27 years old, studying abroad in Hong Kong, and living on campus. My alma mater was back home in the Netherlands. I felt a lump and ignored it at first, until I felt it again three months later. The campus doctor referred me to a specialist and after an echography and biopsy, they…
Read MoreKelly knew she could self-refer for a mammogram at 40 in PEI. Booking that mammogram may have saved her life.
About 6 months ago, at the age of 41, I went for my very first mammogram. I live in Prince Edward Island and had heard about the PEI Breast Screening Program available to any woman over the age of 40, without the need for a doctor or nurse practitioner referral. So I decided to book…
Read MoreDenied a mammogram in her 40s, Natalie found a lump at 46, and it was already Stage 4 breast cancer.
In February 2019, I found a small lump – the size of a split pea – in my breast. I wasn’t particularly worried as I was only 46, which doesn’t even qualify me for a mammogram. In Alberta, you only start getting a mammogram every other year once you turn 50. It’s no wonder I…
Read More