Cobram local shares her story and hopes for testing for everyone of all ages after breast cancer recovery.
Cobram’s Lisa Laffan, 55, is calling for wider testing for everyone of all ages, including further publicising BreastScreen’s free tests for women over 40.
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She said if she hadn’t decided to get a mammogram on a whim in 2019 while living in Townsville, she likely wouldn’t be here today.
After Lisa’s mother passed away six years after her initial breast cancer diagnosis in 2015, Lisa and her sister were told to get mammograms which came back clear.
Four years later, she was living in Townsville with her husband.
“I decided one day to go up to BreastScreen in Townsville ... it had been a couple of years between mammograms but I had zero symptoms,” Lisa said.
“I got called back because they found a mass.”
She was then diagnosed with stage two ductal carcinoma and from there, it was a whirlwind of treatments and tests.
“I had the mammogram at the end of November, 2019, I had the biopsy in December, 21st January, 2020, I saw the surgeon, I had surgery in February and at end of March was when I started chemo, then I did three weeks of radiotherapy in June,” Lisa said.
“Mine was actually quite fast growing ... they first told me it was under 2cm and when they operated on it six weeks later it was just over 2cm.”
Throughout her treatment, Lisa dealt with side effects including nausea, fatigue and altered sense of taste and smell.
“I also suffered with neuropathy so the tips of my fingers went numb, my feet felt like burning, like walking on razorblades,” she said.
“I was lucky that I didn't have a lot of side effects like the other women I’ve spoken to about all this ... some can't work.”
Lisa also still suffers ongoing effects from her treatment nearly two years later, including finger numbness and side effects from the hormone inhibitors she still has to take.
Lisa has attributed catching her breast cancer diagnosis to living in a city like Townsville that has the facilities readily available to catch it early.
“If we had still been here in the country when I was diagnosed in 2019, I wouldn't have caught, it may well have gone unnoticed for few years,” she said.
“I was in denial about ever getting it.”
Stemming from her experience of breast cancer and treatment, she is calling for everyone of all ages to go out and get their breasts checked, even if they don’t have a family history or symptoms.
“If you find anything suspicious, don’t let anyone tell you it’s nothing to worry about ... a lump is a lump, get it checked,” Lisa said.
“Breast cancer isn’t an old ladies’ disease, it affects everyone ... also men too, they can and do get breast cancer.”
Alongside other cancer survivors, she also advocates for wider testing availability for everyone, not just older women.
Free mammograms are available for women over 40 every two years, but Lisa said it is commonly targeted to women over 50.
“Definitely screening should be available for everybody from the age of 18 ... if it advances it can sometimes be too late,” Lisa said.
“Having your boobs squashed is nothing compared to what could happen if you miss cancer.”
“I’ve been through hell and back with this treatment, I don’t want to see anyone else go through it.”
More information on breast cancer including types, diagnosis, treatment, support and more can be found on the Breast Cancer Network Australia website at www.bcna.org.au/