Breast Cancer: Early Detection & Pushing For Answers
- Amanda Butler is a TikTok star and personal trainer who was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 32 with no family history of the disease. The diagnosis came after she found a lump in her breast and got a mammogram after an OB-GYN recommended she do so after taking a look at the lump in the bathroom at a wedding.
- There are many treatment options for people with breast cancer, but treatment depends greatly on the specifics of each case. Identifying these specifics means looking into whether the cancerous cells have certain receptors the estrogen receptor, the progesterone receptor and the HER2 receptor.
- It's important to consider opening up to others during your cancer battle. Whether that's through social media or with a small group of people, you never know how much the support can help you or help those you share with unless you try.
Butler first felt the lump on her right breast around July 2022.
Read MoreThe discovery was made right before she was leaving for a couple work trips, so Butler decided to wait until after her travels to address the lump with a doctor. But right after her trips she went to a wedding where she met an OB-GYN in the bathroom and “begged” her to take a look at the lump.View this post on Instagram
“So, I pull my dress down,” Butler explained. “She literally has me raise my hand overhead, she feels it, and she was like, ‘You do have fibrous tissue, but I really think you should go get a mammogram.'”
Butler did as the doctor recommended and went in for a mammogram. Given that she had “a couple spots in question,” Butler was then instructed to undergo two biopsies.
“I later found out that typically when they ask to do a biopsy of your breast it can most likely lead to cancer,” she said.
Butler was still hoping she’d be fine after the biopsy, but she knew things were wrong when she got a call a few days later saying her results weren’t normal. After meeting with a doctor in person, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Butler had no family history of the disease.
@hiamandabutler Im laughing through the pain #breastcancer #breastcancerawareness💕 #superfreakchallenge #cancer #cancerfighter ♬ original sound – Amanda Butler
She’s currently about halfway through her chemotherapy treatments, but her GoFundMe page also says she’ll need surgery and radiation. Thankfully, her doctor recently said her tumor had shrunk 50 percent and her lymph nodes were barely showing up on her ultrasound. Time will tell if she needs to have lymph nodes removed on top of her upcoming double mastectomy.
Creating social media content about her cancer journey has helped Butler feel more supported, but she wants to take that one step further. She recently posted to her TikTok about potentially setting up a social Zoom for women who are also going through breast cancer and wanting to connect with others.
@hiamandabutler Comment yes or no below 👇🽠I would love to meet y'all regardless and think this would be great for our mental health even if it's a quick 1 hour sesh to bitch. Because we all need to bitch about this cancer shit. LMK! #cancer #chemo #cancertok #breastcancer #hodkinslymphoma #meetup #virtualmeeting #cancerpatient #chemotherapy #depression #sociallife ♬ original sound – Amanda Butler
“It seems like a lot of us are feeling lonely, and that we just want to be there with each other when we’re either sick or when we’re recovering and we’re feeling good,” she said. “You never want to go through this feeling like you’re alone.”
Understanding Breast Cancer
Breast cancer is a common cancer that has been the subject of much research. Many women develop breast cancer every year, but men can develop this cancer too though it is much more rare, in part, due to the simple fact that they have less breast tissue.
Signs and symptoms of breast cancer may include:
- A breast lump or thickening that feels different from the surrounding tissue
- Change in the size, shape or appearance of a breast
- Changes to the skin over the breast, such as dimpling
- A newly inverted nipple
- Peeling, scaling, crusting or flaking of the pigmented area of skin surrounding the nipple (areola) or breast skin
- Redness or pitting of the skin over your breast, like the skin of an orange
It's important to keep an eye out for these symptoms while remembering that having one or many of them does not necessarily mean you have breast cancer. Regardless, you should always speak with a doctor promptly if anything ever feels off or you're experiencing one or more of the signs listed above. You never know when speaking up about your health can lead to a very important diagnosis.
When Should I Get A Mammogram?
Screening for breast cancer is typically done via mammogram, which looks for lumps in the breast tissue and signs of cancer. The American Cancer Society (ACS) says women should begin yearly mammogram screening for breast cancer at age 45 if they are at average risk for breast cancer. The ACS also says those aged 40-44 have the option to start screening with a mammogram every year, and women age 55 and older can switch to a mammogram every other year, or they can choose to continue yearly mammograms.
When You're Getting a Mammogram, Ask about Dense Breasts
It's also important to be on top of self breast exams. If you ever feel a lump in your breast, you should be vigilant and speak with your doctor right away. Voicing your concerns as soon as you have them can lead to earlier cancer detection which, in turn, can lead to better outcomes.
There are many treatment options for people with this disease including surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, targeted therapy and immunotherapy.
Surgery or Chemo First? How Is Breast Cancer Treatment Order Determined
Appropriate treatments depend greatly on the specifics of each case. Identifying these specifics means looking into whether the cancerous cells have certain receptors. These receptors the estrogen receptor, the progesterone receptor and the HER2 receptor can help identify the unique features of the cancer and help personalize treatment.
"These receptors, I like to imagine them like little hands on the outside of the cell, they can grab hold of what we call ligands, and these ligands are essentially the hormones that may be circulating in the bloodstream that can then be pulled into this cancer cell and used as a fertilizer, as growth support for the cells," Dr. Elizabeth Comen, a SurvivorNet advisor and medical oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, previously told SurvivorNet.
The Unique Features Of Breast Cancer: Deciding The Right Course Of Treatment
One example of a type of ligand that can stimulate a cancer cell is the hormone estrogen, hence why an estrogen receptor positive breast cancer will grow when stimulated by estrogen. For these cases, your doctor may offer treatment that specifically targets the estrogen receptor. But for HER2 positive breast cancers, therapies that uniquely target the HER2 receptor may be the most beneficial.
Finding Support on TikTok
During a cancer battle, it's important to know that you are not alone.
There's always people out there for you to be vulnerable with, if you'd like, and connecting with others as you battle the disease can make a world of difference. Another cancer warrior named Kate Hervey knows this all too well.
A young college girl, she was shocked to be diagnosed with synovial sarcoma a rare type of cancer that tends to form near large joints in young adults after seeing her doctor for tenderness and lumps in one of her legs.
Hervey, a nursing student at Michigan State, had to handle her cancer battle during the COVID-19 pandemic and scale back on her social activities as a high-risk patient. That's when she turned to TikTok as a creative outlet and inspired thousands.
Inspiring College Student, 20, Builds Community on TikTok Sharing Her Cancer Journey During COVID-19
"One thing that was nice about TikTok that I loved and why I started posting more and more videos is how many people I was able to meet through TikTok and social media that are going through the same things," she says. "I still text with this one girl who is 22. If I'm having a hard time, I will text her because she will understand. As much as my family and friends are supportive, it's hard to vent to someone who doesn't know what it's really like."
Hervey is now cancer-free, and says she couldn't have done it without the love and support of her TikTok followers.
"I feel like I've made an impact on other people and they have made an impact on me through TikTok, which is crazy to say. I can help people go through what I've been going through as well." She has graciously agreed to allow SurvivorNet to use her content in order to help our community.
So while sharing your story to a vast TikTok audience might not be your thing, it's important to consider opening up to others during your cancer battle. Even if it's with a smaller group, you never know how much the support can help you or help those you share with unless you try.
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