Paget’s Disease of the Nipple

PAGET’S DISEASE OF THE NIPPLE

Is a rare form of breast cancer, and is on the outside of the
breast, on the nipple and areola, it appears as a rash which
later becomes a lesion with a crusty outer edge. I would not
have ever suspected it to be breast cancer but it was. My
nipple never seemed any different to me, but the rash bothered
me so went to my doctor’s office for that.

Sometimes it itched and was sore but other than that it didn’t
really bother me, was just ugly and a nuisance, and would not
clear up with all the creams given by doctor and dermatologist
for the dermatitis on my eyes that I had just had prior to this
outbreak. Therefore I went in to doctors office for further
assistance.

They seemed a little concerned but did not warn me it could
be cancerous. Now I suspect there are not many women out
there who know a lesion or rash on the nipple or areola can be
breast cancer.

What are the symptoms? Mine started out as a single red
pimple on the areola. One of the biggest problems with Paget’s
disease of the nipple is that the symptoms appear to be
harmless. It is frequently thought to be a skin inflammation or
infections,leading to unfortunate delays in detection and care.

The symptoms include:
1. A persistent redness, oozing, and crusting of your nipple
causing it to itch and burn. ( As I stated mine did not itch
much or burn, and no oozing was I aware of, but it did have a
crust along the outer edge on one side.

2. A sore on your nipple that will not heal. (Mine was on the
areola area with a whitish thick looking area in the center of
my nipple)

3. Usually only one nipple is affected.

How is it diagnosed? Your doctor will do a physical exam,
and should suggest having a mammogram of both breasts done
immediately. Even though the redness, oozing and crusting
closely resemble dermatitis (inflammation of the skin),your
doctor should suspect cancer if the sore is only on one breast.
Your doctor should order a biopsy of your sore to confirm
what is going on. They will take a sample of your breast tissue
in that area to test for cancer. If the cancer is only in the nipple
and not in the breast, your doctor may recommend just
removing the nipple and surrounding tissue or suggest
radiation treatments. Had my doctor caught mine right away,
instead of flaking it off as dermatitis perhaps they could of
saved my breast and it wouldn’t have gone to my lymph nodes.

This message should be taken seriously and passed on to as
many of your friends as possible, it could save someone’s life.
My breast cancer has spread and metastsized to my bones, this
after receiving mega doses of chemotherapy, 28 treatments of
radiation and taking tamaxofin. If this had been diagnosed in
the beginning as breast cancer and treated right away perhaps
it would not have spread………………….

I did try to spread the word through Rosie O’Donnell show on
breast cancer awareness but it failed to trigger enough
importance to receive an announcement on her show last year.
This is sad as woman are not aware of Paget’s disease. If by
passing this around on the e-mail we can make others aware of
it and it’s potential danger we are helping women everywhere.

PLEASE SEND THIS TO ALL THE WOMEN YOU CARE
ABOUT; CANCER CAN BE,FOUGHT IF WE ARE ALL
AWARE!

Thanks for taking the time to share.

Carol A. McNamara-Miller
Law Firm Administrator
Hellmuth & Johnson, P.A.
Telephone: (612) 941-XXXX