SALT LAKE CITY (ABC 4 News) - It looks like a rash, or an infection. It strikes younger women, and it's a form of breast cancer that you have probably never heard of. It's called inflammatory breast cancer, or IBC, and unlike other breast cancers, self examinations are useless because often there is no "lump" until it's too late.
Inflammatory breast cancer is aggressive, grows rapidly, and is more deadly than other forms. It's called the "silent" breast cancer because it quietly masquerades as something else.
Julie Neff, who is currently fighting this silent breast cancer, said, "I thought it was Mastitis because I was nursing my infant." But the young mother of two couldn't get the breast infection to go away. "We couldn't get rid of it. They said, 'Oh you better come in because antibiotics aren't doing anything.' We came in and they were like 'Oh, that looks really bad.'"
What Neff and her family doctors thought was a common breast infection was the silent killer, Inflammatory breast cancer, a breast cancer that isn't detected by self exams, and can be missed in a mammogram.
Doctor Anna Beck, an oncologist, said, "It doesn't present with a lump or nipple retraction or dimpling, instead it presents with these diffuse skin changes in the breast. That's why it tends to be overlooked or misdiagnosed until it's more advanced."
Julie was diagnosed with stage 4 inflammatory breast cancer in June, on her 33rd birthday. She said, "It was scary, really really scary."
At first Doctors thought the cancer had spread to her other organs, and was no longer treatable.
Neff worried about the outcome, she said, "I would look at my little babies face and my little boy and I just, it was really hard, a lot of despair because I was like, they are not even going to remember me."
Further testing brought better news. The cancer had not spread, Julie is now being treated with chemo-therapy and radiation.
These are the symptoms to watch out for: swelling that comes on suddenly, ridges, and pink or dark colored areas of skin. And a breast that is painful and warm to the touch.
Inflammatory breast cancer only accounts for about 5% of all breast cancers but doctors say they are seeing more of it. They say it's more common in younger women, and it's especially aggressive, and fast growing.
Doctor Jane Porretta, a surgeon, said, "We usually start with aggressive chemo-therapy rather than surgery which is often the first line of therapy in many other breast cancers."
The Neff family is also fighting Julie's cancer with faith and hope. Julie Neff said, "More hope that I will get through this and you know be able to raise my children."
Neff echoes words of doctors who treat IBC. Like other breast cancers, the key to survival is early detection. She said, "Get tested regularly, go do all of the tests that you need to do, and if there is something that worries you, get in right away. Right away."
The cancer specialists said it's okay to ask for a second opinion if you are concerned about a diagnosis.
So, what are the chances of survival? Because it is usually detected after the cancer is advanced, only 30% of women with IBC are ever cured of it. And it also has a high rate of re-occurrence.
Friday on ABC 4 there will be a panel of live doctors in house to answer your phone calls.
For more information on Inflammatory Breast Cancer, go to http://www.eraseibc.com or http://www.ibcresearch.org/
