They Say Lightening Doesn’t Strike Twice

They say lightening doesn’t strike twice.

It almost unheard of.

It’s a rarity.

In fact, the odds of you being struck by lightning this year are 1 in 960,000. In your lifetime those odds drop  down to about 1 in 12,000. Your odds of being struck by lightning twice in your lifetime are  about 1 in 9 million.

So, it just doesn’t happen.

But what if it did? What if in a blink of an eye everything you thought to be true, suddenly wasn’t?

When the doctor mumbled “we found cancer in your biopsy?” suddenly everything else he said was blurred. Almost as if the very conversation we had just had was suddenly done. Cut off after hearing the word cancer.

Two doctors told me that the spots being biopsied didn’t resemble cancer. Cancer was jagged. Mine wasn’t.

Even after 20 samples were taken, and the blood dripped onto my clothes and the floor, in the back of my mind it wasn’t cancer. It was never going to be cancer.

But then it was.

I listened to the doctor explain to me next steps. I listened as he told me that they caught it early. I listened as he rambled on and on for what seemed like hours.

His reassurance that it was caught early was to come off as reassuring, but ironically it had the opposite effect on me.

I’m 32. Cancer wasn’t part of my story. It was never supposed to be part of my story.

I sit here thinking about my story. It’s a messy puzzle board with missing and broken pieces. It’s a story-line riddled with twists and turns that are sure to keep the reader sitting on the edge of their chair in suspense.

The sad part is that this is life. My life. My family’s life. We have been riddled with misfortune, loss and sickness for years.

The biopsy was supposed to be negative for cancer. This was our rightfully earned break.

I have cancer. My twin sister has cancer. We were diagnosed at 32 within months of each other.

They said lightening doesn’t strike twice, but it did.

Backstory: 

Ash was diagnosed with breast cancer back in November, and underwent a double mastectomy in January. Her cancer was invasive in nature and will require additional treatments including chemotherapy and radiation therapy. She tested positive for the BCRA2 gene which increases the likelihood of breast cancer along with a few other cancers.

I got tested a few weeks later, and I also tested positive for the BCRA2 gene. According to the National Cancer Institute:

“BRCA2 is a gene on chromosome 13 that normally helps to suppress cell growth. A person who inherits certain mutations (changes) in a BRCA2 gene has a higher risk of getting breast, ovarian, prostate, and other types of cancer.”

I went in for a mammogram February 5th., where they found three suspicious areas. They told me I just had dense tissue and that there was calcification’s visible. Because of my sister’s diagnosis, they wanted to do a biopsy to be sure it wasn’t cancerous.

I went in for my biopsy on Valentine’s Day. Two separate doctors told me that they weren’t worried and assured me that it probably wasn’t cancer.  After 20 samples were removed and a healthy amount of blood lost later, I was told I’d receive the results in 2-5 days.

I received a phone call less than 24 hours later shocking me to my inner core. They found cancer.

I have early stage breast cancer.

Ductal carcinoma in situ is very early stage breast cancer with a great prognosis.

DCIS means that the cancer is contained to a milk duct. It was caught early, but it doesn’t mean I’m completely out of the woods yet because there are two other spots that have yet to be tested.  I will need to undergo surgery to remove the cancer, and my treatment plan might will most likely differ from that of my sister whose cancer is invasive.

At this point that’s all I know.

 

Below is some additional information on Ductal Carcinoma in situ or DCIS. I’ve also shared some early signs and symptoms of breast cancer as well as a helpful guide on self-exams.

To read more on DCIS, check this out.

 

I encourage everyone, both men and women, to get their yearly mammograms and screening tests. Learn how to identify signs and symptoms of cancer. Familiarize yourself with your body and also that of your family history so you have a better understanding of your risks to certain cancers and diseases.

Don’t let pride or fear hold you back from understanding and owning your health.

According to the American Cancer Society, early signs and symptoms of breast cancer include lumps or masses, which is why it’s so incredibly important to have regular mammograms and other screening tests.

Other possible symptoms of breast cancer include:

• swelling of all or part of the breast
• skin irritation or dimpling
• breast or nipple pain
• nipple retraction
• redness, thickening of nipple or breast skin or scaliness
• nipple discharge

If you’re looking to make a donation to fight breast cancer, visit Susan Komen.

Here are some additional facts about Breast Cancer.

According to Cancer.org

New cases: In the US in 2019, there will be an estimated
268,600 new cases of invasive breast cancer diagnosed in
women (Figure 3); 2,670 cases diagnosed in men; and an
additional 62,930 cases of in situ breast lesions (ductal
carcinoma in situ [DCIS] or lobular carcinoma in situ
[LCIS]) diagnosed in women (Table 1).
Incidence trends: From 2006 to 2015, invasive female
breast cancer incidence rates increased slightly, by 0.4%
per year.
Deaths: An estimated 42,260 breast cancer deaths
(41,760 women, 500 men) will occur in 2019.

Stats and these type of trends don’t lie. Get tested. Stay up to date on your screening and mammograms. Look into your genetic history, and be proactive.