In late 1988 while towelling off after a shower I discovered a tiny hard spot above the left nipple. I was 58 years of age. It was only the size of a grain of rice, but more rounded. The spot wasn't red, sore or itchy and didn't protrude.
To me, it was quite insignificant and if it wasn't for the fact that I was visiting a doctor friend socially, I would have ignored it. I asked him to look at it but first I had to find it. With my finger pressing on it he passed his finger over mine and declared that it was likely to be just a cyst but as I had shown it to him he would send me to a surgeon.
The surgeon performed a needle biopsy. The result was OK but he said he would check me in one month. He did, and to my dismay it had grown by 2 mm. An excisional biopsy was performed, removing the suspicious area. I had no worries that this had removed the suspicious area. To my shock and horror, within a few days I was told that there was some 'mischief' and was requested to see the surgeon next day. His diagnosis was 'breast cancer' and surgery as scheduled for the next day.
I had not expected what I now know as a radical mastectomy which meant the removal of breast, nipple and an area of about 20 cm across to the left armpit to remove lymph nodes. Recovery was rather painful and exacerbated by a visiting friend telling me that I should be OK if it had not spread to my lymph system or if cells had not escaped to another area of my body! I was traumatised as I lay there wondering had it gone to my feet, back, head, or where?
Great relief came from an assisting surgeon who announced, after about 6-8 days, that THERE WAS NO RESIDUAL CANCER. While he was quite stoic I was ecstatic with relief and joy.
Draining continued for several days, lengthening hospitalisation to 10 days. On release, my wife and I were given the use of a nearby house. The arm was very swollen and painful, always mounted high on pillows as I sat or lay in bed. Days of recovery passed, the swelling gradually decreased and I was greatly encouraged to have a visit from a man who some years earlier had also had a mastectomy. He arranged for ropes and pullies to be fitted high on the wall and gave me a series of exercises to perform. It took an extensive period of time to get some normality back to that arm but it did come. That man, Bill, became a friend on whom I relied upon for counselling and support -- there were no other counsellors or written material available.
Thirteen years passed by without any trouble then one day I had unpleasant flu-like symptoms. As the day wore on my arm turned very red and swollen. The hospital diagnosed lymphoedema and cellulitis had set in. I was hospitalised for 10 days with intravenous feeding of strong antibiotics into the right wrist area and later through a line to a large artery coming from my heart. I was advised of the danger to this arm coming from a spider or mosquito bite, a rose thorn or splinter piercing the skin. Needless to say, I have had three less severe attacks to this present date in 2004. My surgeon has prescribed antibiotics for me to keep always in readiness for further trouble.
I should further say that I am not lopsided anymore as the other nipple and surrounding areola were removed following a strange skin cancer on the right side. Now it's difficult to keep abreast of anything!!
Should I dare ask what caused the cancer? My guess is the intensive X-ray treatment I received on my chest and back as a teenager for acne. Perhaps it was a radioactive cloud that came over my earlier home in Adelaide from the Maralinga atomic tests. Or was it from the belching chimney stack from a nearby chemical factory making weed poison?
I have warded off chronic lymphatic leukemia for 12 years but my sister was not so blessed.
Friends have upheld me in prayer and now at 75 years I still live an active life. I have never felt different to other men because I have had breast cancer for I perceive that anyone can get cancer any place on the human body.
--Alan
