Living with Lobular and kicking off the Lobular Ireland Leaflet Campaign is Eileen Hickey, pictured here taking the ‘What is Lobular Breast Cancer’ leaflets to Beaumont Hospital in Dublin. “Our hope is to share the factual information on these leaflets with both lobular breast cancer patients and patients who don’t yet know their cancer type via the Breast Cancer Centre at the hospital”
Also enclosed with the leaflet is a Patient Breast Density Request Form. Dense breasts which can mask tumours, called a ‘white on white’ or snowball effect and sometimes responsible for delayed or advanced diagnosis, are common in patients with Lobular Breast Cancer.
The response to this request will inform patients if they do in fact have dense breasts and if so they are then made aware that there is a possibility that tumours may not be visible on their annual mammogram and further screening, ultrasound/mri, would be required to accurately identify any future tumours.
Sharing these pieces of information will forearm patients, help them understand their cancer type and ultimately help those with dense breasts acquire adequate screening to match their breast density type.
Everyday has been a Lobular Day for Eileen since her primary diagnoses of Breast Cancer in 2006 at the age of 44, which then metastasized to her bones in 2016. ” I am not just living with cancer but living for the futures of my children & grandchildren, primarily through my patient involvement in research and my hopes for better treatments, preventions & cures.
Throughout October I am sharing my time with Lobular Ireland and our Breast Cancer Awareness Month Campaigns, as are many of the women in our Lobular Ireland Support Group who are well & able. “I have gained many friendships here and value every one and every contribution”. Patients need this support space even when they are well or have completed treatments. Its easier to reach out to someone who knows what you have gone through or are going through
“To look to the future we must first look upon the past, that is where the seeds of the future were planted”
Lobular Ireland 