TNBC Foundation Explains 3 Myths About Triple Negative Breast Cancer
Triple Negative Breast Cancer Awareness is all about bringing attention to this particular type of breast cancer and understanding what makes it different from other types of breast cancer.
The wonderful Triple Negative Breast Cancer Foundation has put together great information on the myths around this particular subtype of breast cancer.
3 Myths about Triple Negative Breast Cancer
Source: tnbcfoundation.org
Myth #1 – People with triple-negative breast cancer can have the same treatments as all other people with breast cancer.
Many people do not understand that there are different kinds of breast cancer. Even some people who have had breast cancer do not understand the differences between triple negative breast cancers and breast cancers that are hormone receptor-positive or HER2-positive. People you meet may have taken a hormonal treatment pill for 5 to 10 years to lower their risk of recurrence (a return of the cancer), or they may know someone who has. These people may not understand that this option does not exist for you. Having to explain the differences between triple-negative and other breast cancers can be frustrating, especially if you are just learning about this diagnosis yourself. On the other hand, you may take some of the same chemotherapy medicines as other people with types of breast cancer.Myth #2 – Only African-Americans get triple-negative breast cancer.
Triple-negative breast cancers affect people of all races. Breast cancers in African-American women are more likely to be triple-negative than those in white women.Myth #3 – Triple-negative breast cancers are always hard to treat.
Your doctor may tell you triple-negative breast cancer is harder to treat than other types of breast cancer. While many triple-negative cancers are aggressive, your doctor’s prediction of how well your treatment will work depends on the tumor size and whether the cancer has traveled to the lymph nodes, tissues near the breast, just as much as it does on its triple-negative status. There are some very effective treatments for triple negative breast cancer. Your doctor will work with you to find the treatment that is right for you.