A lump in the breast that was much more than ‘no big deal’

By Dennis Thompson
HealthDay Reporter

(HealthDay News) -- Kathy Miller knew she had a lump in her left breast, but it was just a lump, probably nothing at all.

"I noticed a huge lump, about the size of a large marble," said Miller, 36, who lives in a suburb of St. Paul , Minn. "I remember finding it and saying, 'I don't have the time for this.' "

She'd just stopped breast-feeding her third child a month and a half earlier. It was probably something to do with that, she reasoned. She'd had a hard time nursing her second child from the left breast. And the breast had barely produced milk at all for her third child.

Even when it started to change the look of her breast, she paid the lump no mind.

"It was that apparent, but it didn't bother me, so I figured no big deal," Miller said.

So she didn't bother seeing a doctor for it.

But Miller had had endometriosis in the past, and with her third child she figured now was the time to deal with that recurring problem once and for all. She went to her obstetrician/gynecologist to talk about a hysterectomy.

As she was about to leave the office, she decided to ask about the lump.

"It was sort of an afterthought, because it had started to hurt me when I picked up my kids," Miller said.

The doctor checked it out and told her he wasn't happy with the lump. He ordered an ultrasound and a mammogram.

In less than five minutes, the ultrasound technician told Miller she probably had breast cancer. This was in October 2005.

"I was in disbelief," Miller said. "I was shocked. It was something I thought happened to other people. Intense panic and fear immediately."

A week later, Miller underwent a bilateral mastectomy -- the removal of both breasts. The doctors had found calcifications in her other breast, early signs of breast cancer, and she decided she didn't want to take any chances.

The surgery was followed by 16 months of weekly chemotherapy, six weeks of radiation, and hormonal therapy.

Miller said she got through everything in large part due to the demands of motherhood. "I had to keep things as normal as I could," she said. "It took all of the focus off of me and put it onto them."

Miller has remained cancer-free since, although the intense treatment caused some damage to her heart. She's now on heart medication and is exercising to improve her heart function.

But she makes no bones about it -- she feels terrible, even now.

"It's probably the worst I've ever felt," Miller said. "I get really tired and short of breath. My chest hurts. I have to stretch a lot from the muscle damage caused by the radiation.

"The best I can do is see through it and take care of my kids, and maybe someday help someone else going through this," she said.

SOURCE: Kathy Miller, St. Paul , Minn.
Last Updated: Dec. 31, 2007

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