The biggest fear we have concerning cancer is that it is not discovered early. That when the cancer is diagnosed it will be too late for a cure. With breast cancer this means that one already has breast cancer metastasis In those cases, the woman’s likelihood that she will still be alive five years beyond diagnosis is reduced drastically. Even with intense treatment many women will die from the disease at that stage.

The day my spouse was told that she had breast cancer was genuinely terrifying. The most difficult aspect was waiting to find out just how bad her disease was. Although she was asymptomatic my greatest fear was that we would learn she had stage 4 breast cancer. Thankfully, her cancer was found while in the early stages. My wife did not have cancer in any of her lymph nodes and the tumor was relatively small. But she went through three tries at a lumpectomy. On all three occasions the margins were found to be positive for the cancer. Following the third effort the surgeon recommended a mastectomy a more major surgery followed by breast reconstruction and following that five years of hormonal therapy. In many ways she was lucky. She did not have advanced breast cancer. She did not require chemotherapy due to the fact her cancer reacts better to hormone therapy than to chemotherapy. My wife doing wonderfully today. This is an experience, though, that I would not wish on anyone else. I cannot even envision what families must go through if the diagnosis is stage 4 breast cancer. I wish only the best for anyone touched by this disease.

Like with cancer of the breast there are other cancers which may be detected early, providing one the possibility of surviving the cancer with proper treatment. Like, there are screening tests available for men for prostate cancer , for women for cervical cancer and for both men and women for colon cancer . By following the recommended screening guidelines one can greatly improve the chances of detecting the cancer early, before it spreads.

The above is not to be taken as medical advice. It is merely for general informational purposes. Please consult with a doctor about your health issues and before taking any medical advice.