My name is Elizabeth and I was dx with IBC in 4/08 Stage 3b, Grade 3, Tumor 12.5cm (size of a baseball) DCIS in my other breast Stage 0. Come to find out the type of cancer I have was rare and aggressive my prognosis was poor. When I went to see my physcian he dx me with masitis and I was on antibiotics for a month and nothing worked. I had a mammogram and ultasound and no cancer detected where the IBC was. Went to see a breast surgeon and she did a biopsy that day. IBC does not come in a lump. As soon as I got my results they had me in the oncologist office the very next day. On they day they scheduled my MUGA, PET, BONE scan all one after the other, port in and chemo the next day after that. My Dr. did not want to mess around because of how serious it was. I did chemo for a year and had a double mastectomy, then radiation for 33 days. It was a long journey. I survived as of 3/09 I was dx NED (no evidence of disease) My faith is what keeps me strong. Anyone wants to talk in more detail about IBC can email me at ebann@cox.net. Be aware of your body. Notice anything different let your Dr. know right away. Do your homework. Ask questions. ibcresearch.org You can do this. I am a survivor and you can be too!

Elizabeth
Glendale, AZ