Pondering the Myths & Mathematics of Breast Cancer

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Statistics

About 155,00 women are living with metastatic breast cancer in the United States and this is projected to rise to 162,000 by 2011 according to Dr. William Gradishar, Director of Breast Oncology at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University. source: Reach MD interview 2010

In developed countries, nearly 30 % of women with early stage breast cancer will eventually develop metastatic breast cancer. (O’Shaughnessy J. Extending Survival With Chemotherapy in Metastatic Breast Cancer The Oncologist.2005; 10 (suppl 3): 20-9)

In 2008, almost 49,000 Americans, including 1,990 men, were diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. (American Cancer Society - 2008 Statistics)

98 percent of patients with breast cancer that has not spread beyond the breast live five years or more, while only 27 percent of patients whose cancer has spread to other organs survive five years.
(Komen website Jan 2010)

Median survival after diagnosis is three years. There has been no statistically significant improvement in the past twenty years. (American Society of Clinical Oncology [ASCO] Report - 2008)

Despite the decrease in cancer mortality rates since 1990, the actual number of Americans losing their battle with the disease has hovered around 40,000 each year since at least the year 2000.

(American Cancer Society statistics 2000 - 2008)

This translates to one death from metastatic breast cancer every 14 minutes.

The Myths...

Below are, reportedly, a few of the myths that still persist about metastatic breast cancer:

Myth: Research funding is well balanced for all stages of cancer

Reality: 90% of cancer deaths result from stage IV cancer, but only 2% of research funds are devoted to stage IV.

Myth: Metastatic breast cancer is rare

Reality: 30% of breast cancer patients progress to stage IV. Many more initially present with metastatic breast cancer.

Myth: Healthy lifestyles, timely screening and early detection prevent metastasis

Reality: Metastasis happens despite vigilance and precautions. Even stage I patients can and do metastasize.

Myth: Metastatic breast cancer is becoming a chronic disease. Fewer die every year

Reality: New treatments extend life for some, but survival remains elusive. Over 40,000 women and men have been dying annually since 1987.

Myth: Stage IV breast cancer patients are well supported by many groups

Reality: Far too many patients must face their challenges with little to no support. Most programs focus on wellness and recovery, avoiding any reference to stage IV.

And now for the good news...

Statistics can be frightening… and some statistics may not even be applicable to an individual and their specific type of cancer, or their particular response to treatment.

Many statistics represent an average number. Not everyone falls into that average.

Each of us is a statistic of ONE.

Check out: http://mbcnetwork.org/

Belligerently "Peppy" . . .?

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I have done some personal re-labelling of the tried and true "emotional stages" of breast cancer. The current template:

* Denial and Shock
* Anger, Rage
* Stress and Depression
* Grief and Fear
* Acceptance, Adjustment
* Fight and Hope ... blah, blah, blah...oops! I mean, etc. etc, etc....

I cannot speak to the standard emotional/psychological appellations (above), but for me personally, I have had the pleasure of working through:

* FREAKED-OUT
* DENIAL, and
* PREPARATION

Preparation has been my favorite so far because it really allowed me to show off my strengths: the researching; the cross-examinations of medical professionals; the organizing of the data; and the strategizing of the course of action. I love that kind of stuff. Especially when it includes tabs, annotations, indices and spreadsheets.

Over the last two days, however, I believe I have now entered a stage that I am fondly calling:

BELLIGERENTLY PEPPY


There are external factors over the last two days that launched this new stage, i.e.: the myopia of certain unnamed curmudgeons I find myself embroiled in battle with (professionally); the idiocracy of the current health care debate that only punctuates that the human species, or at least the American strain, values profit over decency; as well as the ambiguity of the practice of medicine -- I got the preliminary pathology results yesterday and among other things it appears that the tumor was much larger than anyone expected. Let's put it this way, if I had had no tumor in my left boobee I WOULD NOT HAVE HAD A LEFT BOOBEE!

This new stage is confusing, however.

On the one hand, the immediate and general response has been...Oh! TC must be feeling better, she is "ripping people new ones" again! And, I do feel strangely energized by the present fury and frustration I am feeling.

Conversely, I feel extremely drained by that same energy it takes to keep these fires stoked. And that fact alone pisses me off.

For now, I suppose I will just accept on face-value that the former "energizing" fury is the PEPPY; that the latter composes the BELLIGERENT; and just see where this takes me. And, if I am feeling more peppy than belligerent, just hope that I might feel enough momentary compassion to forewarn!