A Dublin woman who was diagnosed with breast cancer is urging other women to "keep checking yourself and go with your gut" as part of the Irish Cancer's Society's Breast Cancer Awareness month this October.
Amanda Kennedy, 59, is originally from Walkinstown and is living in Clondalkin with her husband Noel and son Oisin. Last December, Amanda found a lump in her left breast.
She told Dublin Live: "Christmas week I was sitting on the side of the bed and I checked myself, I've always checked myself and I just felt 'oh this isn't right' when I was putting my bra on. I had another check again and there was a lump there, so I rang the doctor straight away and she saw me straight away on December 22."
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Amanda explained that while her doctor gave her a good examination, she was told that it was most likely nothing to worry about and that she would be sent for a non-urgent mammogram. Amanda was sent home and told to try enjoy her Christmas.
After the holidays, Amanda went for her mammogram. She explained: "The girl said to me no news is good news, and if you don't hear from us that's grand.
"So about four or five weeks went by and I got a follow-up appointment at St Vincent's Hospital and she said the mammogram came back clear and I said, 'why have I still got a lump?' I said I'm not moving until you tell me what that lump is. I went in, got examined, then the doctor said I had to see the big boss, and I knew that I was in trouble.
"On the Thursday I went in for a biopsy and a mammogram they put clips in for the biopsy, and on the way home they rang and said they found calcium deposits in the mammogram and I had to come back to have them biopsied."
The following Monday, Amanda had a biopsy which she described as "horrific". And a few weeks later, she got her diagnosis.
Amanda recalled: "The doctor said 'we've got good news and bad news, the bad news is you have got cancer, and the good news is that we can remove it'. So I said 'okay, when are we going to do it?' Most people were coming out of his room crying but I just wanted it sorted."
On 21 June, Amanda had her operation to remove the tumor from her breast, as well as five lymph nodes. And this week, Amanda has just finished sessions of radiotherapy which she said "hit me with a bang".
She said: "The breast is still a little bit sore now and again, but I'm so lucky because it hadn't spread and the lymph nodes came back clear which was brilliant. The tumor had grown from 1.8cm to 2.1cm in two weeks. The fact is, I could have walked away from that office that day, and where would I have been in two years time if I hadn't questioned why I had a lump."
Amanda also said that women with larger boobs are at risk of their cancer being missed due to mammograms not picking up traces of cancer. "When you have a mammogram on your boobs they call it dense boobs, it doesn't pick most of the time with women with dense boobs, there is a woman campaigning for all women to have an MRI scan as well," said Amanda.
Amanda is also a member on Facebook of the Irish Breast Cancer Survivors, which she calls a "wealth of experience". But she's also lost a lot of friends since her cancer diagnosis.
She said: "I felt abandoned by some people I considered very close who never rang or texted. My niece was brilliant, she's 30, looking after my parents.
"And my husband was brilliant, only for him I'd be lost. I'm back on medication now that has put me back into menopause, my cancer was an estrogen cancer so I can't produce estrogen."
And Amanda insisted that cancer is not necessarily a death sentence for everyone. She said: "It's not the death sentence that everyone thinks it is. It is obviously for some people who don't get it in time, but that's why I feel very lucky because I went with my gut. I was going into that office and I said I wasn't leaving until I found out because I knew it was something."
Her advice to others is: "Keep checking yourself. Go with your gut instinct, you know your own body. I know if there's something wrong with my body."
She also praised the staff at St Vincent's Hospital who were "fantastic" throughout her treatment and radiation. She added: "The dignity and respect you're given, I can't say a bad word against them."
Amanda is among many breast cancer patients and survivors from around the country calling on people to join the 'Care For Your Pair' movement, to mark Breast Cancer Awareness Month this October. The Irish Cancer Society is asking women and men to be learn breast cancer warning signs such as changes in your breast which include lumps or thickening in and around breasts, swelling around armpits or under collarbones and flattened nipples.
More than 3,500 women and around 35 men are diagnosed with breast cancer in Ireland every year. Most are diagnosed early and the earlier patients are diagnosed, the more treatment options such as surgery, radiotherapy and drug therapies are available.
Breast changes include lumps or thickening in and around breasts and armpits, dimpling, red, tender breasts, swelling around armpits or under collarbones and flattened nipples. Check by learning what to look out for, like lumps or other changes to the look and feel of breasts or nipples. Look in the mirror for changes and feel for changes in the shower, when putting on moisturiser or when lying down.
Always speak to your GP if you notice anything unusual. To learn more about the signs of breast cancer and how to check yourself, visit cancer.ie/careforyourpair. You can also contact the Irish Cancer Society Support Line on 1800 200 700.
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