Stage III Invasive Lobular Carcinoma: Evelyn's Patient Story

What happened, in summary

Evelyn, a 34-year-old Mexican American graduate student in marine biology from Los Angeles, first sensed something unusual in September 2019 when she felt a hard area on the underside of her right breast. It did not feel like the kind of breast lump she had heard people describe, so at first she did not think much of it. Later that month, she brought it up with her doctor. The finding was initially treated as unlikely to be serious because Evelyn was young. Five months later, mammogram and ultrasound showed a large mass and enlarged lymph nodes. After 3 biopsies, Evelyn learned that she had invasive lobular carcinoma in breast tissue and in a lymph node, along with ductal carcinoma in situ. ILC was also found in her left breast. By the time the tumor was found, the cancer was already Stage IIIC. Evelyn responded to the diagnosis like a researcher: she looked for medical literature on ILC and quickly saw how much remains unknown, especially for women diagnosed before age 40. Her experience led her to connect with the Lobular Breast Cancer Alliance, where she became interested in helping other patients advocate for themselves and use every available diagnostic tool for earlier detection.