Sometimes when anyone thinks about fighting breast cancer they have an image of an older woman, but that is not always the case. The truth is that the risk of breast cancer increases with age, but it begins much earlier in life. The difference is that it can rear its ugly head at any age and this is one of the most important pieces of information all young girls need to be aware. You probably thought that unless breast cancer runs in your family there is nothing to worry about, right. This is an old wives tale with no foundation in logic or medical science.

Younger women just do not give breast cancer a thought and yet should. Statistically one of every two hundred and thirty young women between the ages of thirty and forty will receive a diagnosis of breast cancer. Were you aware that even when the symptoms of breast cancer begin to show very early on the five-year survival rate stands at about eighty-two percent? Do you also realize that means that eighteen percent of young women receiving a diagnosis of breast cancer will not survive?

Clinical, biological, and pathological features of breast cancer in younger women like you vary from older women. If you receive a diagnosis of breast cancer before reaching age forty this is an indication of a more palpable mass rather than the mammographic indications. In younger women there is another difficulty because the breast tissue is generally dense therefore by the time a small lump is noticeable the cancer has spread and become more advanced. However, what you do have in your favor is the fact that younger women generally respond better.

Younger women having gone through this ordeal do understand what is at stake for them. May of these young women had chemotherapy and now faces the problem of an early menopause. Women who already have a family will fare much better by accepting this than young women who have remained single. Time, weekly counseling, and joining with other survivors will help to change these inadequacies you are now feeling.

Exposure to chemotherapy has caused many changes such as the loss of hair, the perception of yourself, and how you believe those around you see you now. Sure things have changed for you, but inside you are still the same person and you need to feel proud of surviving such an ordeal. Okay, yes, you lost most if not all of your hair, but it will grow back. You need to focus on the fact that you survived. You survived for yourself and for all your family and friends who surround you.

Have you considered wearing a wig if it makes you feel more comfortable. What about those loose shirts and sweatshirts you have started wearing, are you that self-conscious about your appearance? You are looking at this entire issue as if you did something wrong. The reality is the exact opposite, as you will soon come to realize. Be proud of all you have accomplished and the ordeal you have just survived. There are many other women who were not as fortunate as you have been.

Maybe it is a good idea to seek out counseling to help you through this ordeal the rest of the way. You really need to understand how brave you really are and how many of your family members and friends are routing for you. There are many other women out there who are looking up to you because you are a survivor. In time and through counseling you will soon come to realize how much you have contributed.

Related Posts

• Breast Cancer In Young Women
• Living through Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer
• Emotions in Dealing with Breast Cancer
• Young Women And Breast Cancer
• Changing with Breast Cancer