Fans Send Love to ‘Baywatch’ Star Nicole Eggert With News Her Breast Cancer Is Also In Her Lymph Nodes — Why Advocating for Your Health Is Important

“The self-exams, I’m telling you, I kick myself — that’s the one think that I should have been doing,” the mom of two, 52, told Inside Edition in a new video interview, which didn’t go into detail about the lymph node involvement.

The former Baywatch star also regrets ever getting implants. “If I didn’t have them and I had my smaller, natural breasts, I am sure I would have felt it much sooner.”

Eggert initially found her tumor with a breast self-exam (BSE). “When I felt it, my heart dropped, I was like, ‘Oh my God.'”

RELATED: ‘Baywatch’ Star Nicole Eggert Had ‘Terrible Pain’ & Weight Gain, Which She Dismissed As Menopause, Before Breast Cancer Diagnosis

A mammogram and three biopsies then led to her stage 2 cribriform carcinoma breast cancer diagnosis.

The American Cancer Society says that cribriform carcinomas are rare, and while invasive, are associated with a better prognosis.

Eggert says she first experienced weight gain and fatigue, which she assumed was menopause-related, as told to PEOPLE, and pain in her left breast. However, she was having trouble getting in to see a doctor due to so many facilities being overbooked.

“Nobody could take me, so I walked into every breast care center, like ‘Please, please, please!'”

“It’s horrifying,” she says of the feeling of a tumor being in your body and you’re not able to do anything about it. “Because every minute and every day that passes, you know it’s growing.”

Eggert says she has a “lot more testing” ahead of her and knows she has a “long road” to go, but for now, she at least has care and is getting answers.

Advocating for Your Health

Whether you are currently battling cancer or worried that you might have it, it’s always important to advocate for your health.

Cancer is an incredibly serious disease, and you have every right to insist that your doctors investigate any possible signs of cancer a lesson we can all learn from Eggert, who, thankfully, insisted on getting in for her tests.

‘Be Pushy, Be Your Own Advocate … Don’t Settle’

“Every appointment you leave as a patient, there should be a plan for what the doc is going to do for you, and if that doesn’t work, what the next plan is,” Dr. Zuri Murrell, director of the Cedars-Sinai Colorectal Cancer Center, told SurvivorNet in a previous interview. “And I think that that’s totally fair. And me as a health professional that’s what I do for all of my patients.”

What Is Breast Cancer Staging?

The stage of a cancer determines the extent of local disease, the lymph node involvement, and if there is a distant spread or metastatic disease.

The specific staging can vary between types of cancers. In breast cancer, the treatment for different stages of disease can vary significantly. Again, clinical exams and imaging are used to determine the stage.

Although Eggert’s cancer is more rare, the most common type of breast cancer is ER-positive, HER2-negative, representing approximately 60-70% of diagnosed breast cancers. Triple-negative breast cancer represents around 15% of cases. HER2-positive breast cancer represents another 15-20% of cases.

Learning About Breast Self-Exams

Breast self-exams (BSE) are a simple yet important self-check method that involves observing and feeling the breasts for any changes or abnormalities.

While they are not a replacement for professional clinical exams or mammograms, BSE can serve as an essential first step in monitoring breast health and detecting any potential concerns.

Breast Cancer: Introduction to Prevention & Screening

These type of exams play a crucial role in early detection and diagnosis of potential breast conditions, including breast cancer. By performing regular self-examinations, you become familiar with the normal look and feel of your breasts, making it easier to identify any unusual changes. Early detection of breast cancer can vastly improve treatment outcomes and the chances of successful recovery.

While BSE alone isn’t a guarantee for early breast cancer diagnosis, it serves as a supplementary tool to other screening methods, such as clinical breast exams and mammography.

Here are some key reasons why breast self-exams are important:

• Familiarization with your breasts: Regular BSE helps you understand how your breasts normally look and feel. This knowledge makes it easier to identify changes or abnormalities as they occur.
• Early detection: In some cases, a breast self-exam might lead to the discovery of a lump or other change that could indicate breast cancer or another noncancerous condition. The earlier a problem is identified, the better the chances for successful treatment.
• Empowerment: Taking control of your breast health by performing regular self-exams can empower you and foster a sense of awareness, responsibility, and confidence regarding your well-being.
• Routine health monitoring: Incorporating BSE into your monthly self-care routine helps establish a consistent health-monitoring practice, making it more likely that you will notice any unexpected changes.

It’s important to remember that BSE should never replace professional clinical exams or mammograms. Instead, view these self-exams as a complementary practice to maintain optimum breast health and ensure early detection in case an issue arises.

Don’t hesitate to consult your doctor if you notice any changes or abnormalities during your self-examination.

How To Perform Breast Self-Exams

The optimal time to perform a BSE is about a week after the beginning of your menstrual cycle when your breasts are less tender and swollen. If you don’t menstruate, choose a consistent day every month to perform the exam.

Here’s a step-by-step guide to performing a breast self-exam:

• Observe in the mirror: Stand in front of a mirror, undressed from the waist up, with your arms relaxed at your sides. Examine your breasts and nipples for changes in size, shape, or color. Look for any dimpling, puckering, or redness on the skin. Then, raise your arms overhead and examine your breasts from all angles, including with your hands on your hips.
• Palpate while standing: While standing or sitting, use the pads of your three middle fingers to gently press on your breast tissue, moving in small circular motions. Cover your entire breast, from the collarbone to the top of your abdomen, and from your armpit to your cleavage. Apply light, medium, and firm pressure as you examine each area, feeling for any changes or lumps.
• Examine your nipples: Gently squeeze your nipple between your thumb and index finger. Check for any discharge, and if present, note the color and consistency. Make sure to examine both breasts.
• Palpate while lying down: Lie down flat on your back with a folded towel or small pillow under your right shoulder. Place your right hand behind your head. With your left hand, follow the same palpation process as in step 2, covering the entire breast area. Repeat this process for your left breast, placing a towel or pillow under your left shoulder and switching hands.
  Remember, the goal of a breast self-exam is to familiarize yourself with the normal appearance and feel of your breasts. This familiarity will make it easier to detect any changes that may occur, allowing you to take prompt action and consult a doctor if necessary.

Keep in mind that some changes are normal and may not indicate a serious issue, but it’s always better to be proactive and discuss any concerns with a healthcare professional.

You should consult with your doctor if you notice a new lump, nipple changes, dimpling or puckering in breast appearance, unusual breast or nipple pain, or redness/swelling of the breasts.

Family History & Breast Cancer Risk

Although breast cancer can happen to anyone, certain factors can increase a person’s risk of getting the disease. The known risk factors for breast cancer include:

• Older age
• Having a gene mutation such as the BRCA1 or BRCA2
• Added exposure to estrogen
• Having children after the age of 30
• Exposure to radiation early in life
• Family history of the disease

Different types of genetic testing can help people with a family history of cancer better ascertain their cancer risks. Your doctor will discuss your family history of cancer with you in the context of your type of tumor and your age at diagnosis. Hereditary genetic testing is usually done with a blood or saliva test.

About ten percent of breast cancers are hereditary, says Dr. Ophira Ginsburg, Director of the High-Risk Cancer Program at NYU Langone’s Perlmutter Cancer Center.

WATCH: Understanding genetic testing for breast cancer

“We encourage only those with a family history to get [genetic testing],” Dr. Ginsburg tells SurvivorNet. “I would say that if you have anyone in your family diagnosed with a rare cancer. Or if you have a strong family history of one or two kinds of cancer, particularly breast and ovarian, but also colon, rectal, uterine, and ovarian cancer, that goes together in another cancer syndrome called the Lynch Syndrome.”

The second test involves the genetic sequencing of your tumor if you’ve been diagnosed with cancer by this point. These genetic changes can be inherited, but most arise during a person’s lifetime. This process usually involves examining a biopsy or surgical specimen of your tumor. This testing can lead to decisions on drugs that might work against your cancer.

It’s important to discuss genetic testing and your family’s health history with your doctor, who can help steer you in the right direction to help determine your cancer risk.

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