October 8. While cancer does not discriminate, our system, including health care does.
FACT: As far as early stage breast cancer goes, White and Black women are about as likely to be diagnosed. Black people, however, die at a rate 40% higher than Whites! 1/ There are multiple reasons for this, some being that Blacks are more likely to have triple negative breast cancer, which is more aggressive; they are more likely to be diagnosed at a younger age, and are often dismissed ("you're too young to have cancer"); 2/

October 7. My maternal grandmother had (probable) pancreatic cancer. My mother and two of her sisters had breast cancer, with my mom having 2 local recurrences, and then lung and bone mets diagnosed right before she died earlier this year from Covid. 1/ One of my aunts also had ovarian cancer. Two of my generation of maternal first cousins have had early stage breast cancer and one of their daughters, at age 35, was diagnosed with breast cancer. I had early stage breast cancer in my mid/late 40s ...2/

October 6. "Early detection saves lives". "Get your mammogram to prevent cancer". We hear phrases like this every October and they are just plain wrong.
FACT: Mammograms don't prevent cancer they detect cancer that is already there!!! 1/ And sometimes they don't even do that: breast density can obscure cancer; lobular and inflammatory breast cancers are often missed on mammos; radiologists reading a mammogram can miss a cancer. 2/

@usnehal Dr. Nehal I am holding space for you. My 94-year-old mother lives in VA and was admitted with pneumonia almost 2 weeks ago (COVID-). Long h/o supposed early stage BC but bone/lung mets dx on chest CT. Went to rehab, doing ok, took turn for worse. Readmitted. @usnehal Now COVID+. ER doc called to confirm my mom’s wishes to be DNR/DNI. She’s 94, with #metastatic cancer. Yes, DNR/DNI, comfort measures. Now on hospice service with death imminent. I’m in CA, with metastatic cancer myself, only 1st shot rec’d. Nurses and docs have called me daily