Could my MIL have breast cancer?
Posted on Apr 29, 2009 under breast cancer |She is 48 yrs old and smokes a pack of cigarettes every two days. Last week she went for a mammogram and today she got a phone call saying they found multiple small masses on her right breast (the size of a grain of salt) and set up an appointment for her to have another mammogram tomorrow morning so that they can have a better look at it. What do you think it could be?
April 29th, 2009 at 7:50 am
having been through a similar thing myself quite recently it could just be that the masses they are seeing is enlarged gland tissue I know its a worry but try not to until you get concrete answers…..good luck and best wishes xx
April 29th, 2009 at 7:50 am
Well, it's always a possibility that it is cancer, but it may not be. Some times breast lumps or masses are just hardened breast tissue or calcium deposits. Excessive caffeine can also cause lumps. It sounds as if they caught whatever it is early. Don't worry, your MIL will be ok. There are many different treatments available.
April 29th, 2009 at 7:50 am
Smoking is not strongly linked to breast cancer. (However, I'll note that I smoked for 25 years and was diagnosed with breast cancer 1.5 years ago.) Still she should quit … lung cancer, emphysema, COPD, heart disease, stroke … all are real threats to the long-term smoker.
The multiple small masses the size of a grain of salt can be calcifications. These are considered precancerous in some cases, I believe it depends on other observations of the tissue. They can also be small tumors. It will all depend on what the diagnostic mammograms show (the second set she is going to have).
They may want to biopsy the tissue to make sure what they're seeing.
It's not time to worry too much yet. Let the process go through its course.