I have some breast pain that is burning from time to time I have been taking Motrin for it. I also noticed that my armpit on that same side is burning it looks like an irritation from shaving but is very constant. I had a mammo and a diagnostic mammo done in January of 09 is this symptoms of IBC?
Thank you
Hi - Rather than spend energy worrying, best to call and make a doctor's appointment. Worrying doesn't accomplish anything, other than to make you feel bad, right?
There's no telling what the pain and rash are from; could be IBC, although that's very rare. It's probably from some other cause, but nonetheless, you should find out what's causing this, and what you can do about it. So take that worry energy and use it to take some action! Good luck - PJH
I am currently being treated for IBC. Here are some questions for you.
1. Is your breast swollen and inflamed?
2. Is your nipple inverted?
3. Do you have discharge from your nipple?
4. Does your breast skin have a dimpled appearance, making it resemble orange peel?
5. Is your breast sore?
These are all classic symptoms of IBC. You can also do a simple test by taking a good pinch of flesh on your affected breast and do the same to the unaffected breast. The flesh on the unaffected breast will fall into lines between your finger and thumb. If you have IBC in the affected breast, what you see between your finger and thumb will resemble orange peel. You need to do this while you are not wearing a bra. I did this before my mastectomy and the difference in the two breasts was quite marked.
One important factor with IBC is that mammograms don't pick always it up, but an ultrasound will. It's really important to have IBC treated as quickly as possible as it grows and metastasises very quickly. Treatment will always follow this protocol:
1. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy (usually anthracyclines)
2. Mastectomy
3. Adjuvant chemotherapy (usually taxanes)
4. Radiation
It may also involve hormone therapy and more often treatment with Herceptin since many IBC tumours are Her2+. It is a long treatment, but is becoming more and more successful. My own prognosis is good and my response to the initial anthracyclines was spectacularly good.
It needs to be stressed that IBC is very rare, accounting for about 5% of breast cancers.
Your best course is to seek medical attention as soon as possible. If you are seeing a GP, he/she may never have seen a case of IBC before. I hope that you are lucky enough not to be faced with this form of the disease, but at least now you have some more information to go on. Be prepared to push for investigations to be done as this is the only way to set your mind at rest. Good luck. - Sue
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