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When 32-year-old Sarah Lang first began to notice a rash developing on her right breast, she initially passed it off as irritation from her sports bra. The rash, however, continued to grow and expanded into a welt.
Lang’s concern increased. “It got to the point where the skin on my nipple would rip off whenever I removed my bra. It was really painful. Deep down, I knew I wasn’t OK I just had this gut feeling,” she recalled.
That was when Lang finally decided to bring herself to the doctor to get it checked out. She was initially prescribed a topical cream, generally used to treat dermatitis.
The ointment, however, failed to improve her condition, so Lang returned to her doctor. That was when they finally ran a biopsy and determined that Lang had three tumors in her breast. Lang had Paget’s disease of the nipple.
Lang’s doctors continue to run tests on her – MRIs, ultrasounds, and mammograms – to determine how to best treat her disease. It was finally determined that Lang would need partial mastectomies.
Although her initial procedures went well, follow-up tests revealed that Lang’s tumors were still present.
“It was a real shock,” Lang said, “I’d had no lumps or anything to indicate they were there. At the moment, I’m still waiting on a full diagnosis so I don’t know what stage my cancer is, or what the next steps are.”
As Lang awaits her doctor’s next advice – potentially chemotherapy – she and her husband are going through fertility treatment to ensure they can start a family in the future, regardless of how Lang’s cancer treatment will proceed.
“Through all this I’ve learned how important it is to listen to your own body,” Lang admitted. “If something isn’t right, keep pushing to get it checked out.”
