Information

Common IBC Symptoms:

  • a swollen breast
  • a painful breast
  • incessant itchy breast
  • a rash on one breast
  • a bug bite that won't go away
  • nipple changes
  • a hardened area in the breast similar to a pencil lead, not a lump
These symptoms may appear overnight without warning. If they do not go away with creams, ointments or antibiotics, demand that your doctor rule out IBC.

Things You need to know:
Mammograms usually don't pick up IBC because so often there is no lump.

Why - Reason #1
Doctors misdiagnose Inflammatory Breast Cancer as a breast infection or mastitis.

Why - Reason #2
We need to push this message across the country.

Who..
Our group of dedicated advocates are, and a brief message about each one of us.

Tips:
These are TIPS that doctors and patients have given to people dealing with first symptoms of Inflammatory Breast Cancer, plus TIPS from patients who have gone through chemotherapy.

  • Insist that your physician take your temperature at initial exam. Mastitis is often accompanied by an increase in body temp, while IBC is not.

  • Any sudden changes to your breast (sometimes overnight), swelling, constant itching, pain or discoloration need to be taken seriously. See your Doctor.

  • We are told to look for a lump. Not so normally with Inflammatory Breast Cancer. An overnight swelling of the breast, pain, itching that will not go away with creams or ointments, should be checked by a breast specialist. And please be your own best advocate. It could save your life.

Medical Disclaimer

The information contained on the 'eraseibc.com' web site is presented for the purpose of educating people on Inflammatory Breast Cancer. Nothing contained on this web site should be construed nor is intended to be used for medical diagnosis or treatment. It should not be used in place of the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider. Should you have any health care related questions, please call or see your physician or other qualified health care provider promptly.


Education is the MOST powerful tool in the fight against misdiagnosis and improper treatment of Inflammatory Breast Cancer.

Our Foundation's mission is to educate the public and the medical community when needed, that this form of breast cancer is different and is rarely picked up by mammograms.

Towards this mission, the third
Wednesday of the month our
radio show, called
IBC FACT & FALLACIES,
will dispel the myths and help educate our listeners.

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"Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass....It's about learning to dance in the rain"
Andy Rooney

Congress on IBC

MAY 4, 2009

FEDERAL RESOLUTION FOR INFLAMMATORY BREAST CANCER

Whereas inflammatory breast cancer is a rare but very aggressive type of breast cancer in which the cancer cells block the lymph vessels in the skin of the breast; (Introduced in House) HRES 395 IH

Whereas inflammatory breast cancer is a rare but very aggressive type of breast cancer in which the cancer cells block the lymph vessels in the skin of the breast; (Introduced in House) HRES 395 IH

111th CONGRESS

1st Session
H. RES. 395

Supporting efforts to raise awareness, improve education, and encourage research of inflammatory breast cancer .
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

May 4, 2009
Mrs. MCCARTHY of New York submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

RESOLUTION
Supporting efforts to raise awareness, improve education, and encourage research of inflammatory breast cancer . Whereas inflammatory breast cancer is a rare but very aggressive type of breast cancer in which the cancer cells block the lymph vessels in the skin of the breast ; Whereas inflammatory breast cancer accounts for between 1 and 6 percent of all breast cancer cases in the United States; Whereas inflammatory breast cancer is more common than acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children; Whereas inflammatory breast cancer may have environmental causes; Whereas inflammatory breast cancer is particularly difficult to detect because the early signs of breast cancer , such as a breast lump or suspicious area on a routine screening mammogram, are rarely present in inflammatory breast cancer ; Whereas inflammatory breast cancer tends to affect women at a younger age than most breast cancers; Whereas black women are more likely to have inflammatory breast cancer than white women; Whereas inflammatory breast cancer is more likely to have metastasised at the time of diagnosis than noninflammatory breast cancer cases; Whereas the 5 year survival rate for patients with inflammatory breast cancer is between 25 and 50 percent, which is significantly lower than the survival rate for patients with noninflammatory breast cancer ; Whereas the incidence rate for inflammatory breast cancer is on the rise, and the cause of this increase is unknown; Whereas organizations such as the Inflammatory Breast Cancer Foundation are working to increase awareness of the disease in the public and medical communities; Whereas the MD Anderson Cancer Center at the University of Texas is among one of the only facilities in the country to have a clinic specifically dedicated to inflammatory breast cancer ; and Whereas many physicians remain unaware of inflammatory breast cancer and diagnosis is frequently delayed due to a lack of knowledge in both the lay and medical communities: Now, therefore, be it

  • Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that the Federal Government has a responsibility to--
  • (1) endeavor to raise awareness and improve education about inflammatory breast cancer ;
  • (2) encourage the American Medical Association to take steps to immediately increase awareness of inflammatory breast cancer among physicians;
  • (3) encourage research that will improve treatments for inflammatory breast cancer ; and
  • (4) continue to consider ways to improve access to information on inflammatory breast cancer for both doctors and patients.

March 2007

Patti Bradfield and Senator Patty Murray (WA). Bradfield wanted to thank Senator Murray for taking the case for better education of Inflammatory Breast Cancer to the National level. Senator Murray put IBC into the Congressional Record, so lawmakers would know that IBC is under-studied, under-reported and and because of being misdiagnosed in too many cases, cutting short the lives of too many women.