Comments on: MY BREASTS COULD KILL ME – WITH DAWN PORTER

By: doreen evans

doreen evans — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 23:43:13 +0000

l was diagnosed with breast cancer in early december 2008 and had a mastectomy on the 18th dec 2008. my cancer was picked up, as 13yrs previously l did a tamoxofen trial for 5yrs at the frenchay hospital in bristol,on the IBS Study. in november 2008 l was invited by the IBS Study at frenchay to do another trial for a different drug which l agreed to do, before the trial started l needed to have a mammogram,scan, and various blood tests,which these picked up the breast cancer, l had a biopsy there and then at the breast clinic which said it was grade 2/3 but would not be positive until l had the operation, l was given 3 options a lumpectomy, mastectomy, or bilateral mastectomy(if dawn porter had taken the trouble to do a little more research she would have known it is not called a “Double Mastectomy”) so l opted for the mastectomy because l have the gene and because of my family history which is quite extensive. My mother died of it aged 63yrs in 1973 her mother died of it at the age of 59yrs, also 3 of my mothers sisters died of it, 2 cousins died of it plus l have 5 sisters who 4 of us have had breast cancer me being latest one at the age of 66yrs, l also have 3 nieces who have the gene. l have now opted to have the other breast removed and are due to go into frenchay next week to have this done, l have not had or going to have breast reconstruction, i will be only too happy to be free of them, as l have always been big breasted, an it will be wonderful not to have to wear a bra, and this does not make me any the less feminine.
Dawn Porter needs to grow up and stop acting like a spoilt child, whilst watching the program l became more and more incensed at her and wanted to shake the day lights out of her, the program did no favours, all it did was highlight a rather spoilt child who was more interested in her self image than anything else.
l also cannot imagine the NHS doing all the tests a mri scan the gene test on the ordinary every day joe blogs, it is just too hard strapped for money. l was lucky as l attended the IBS study and they do all this testing etc anyway, so the tv program would only give false hope to many a woman who would want all this done.
l agree with everything that Ruth Rankin has said, real women who have been diagnosed with the decease do not carry on like dawn porter,she was not convincing at all it was as if she was play acting, which of course she was. it is a shock at first but after that we get on with it, there is so much more treatment available to us now than when my mother and grandmother were diagnosed with it

By: Ruth Rankin

Ruth Rankin — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 21:57:57 +0000

I have just been diagnosed with breast cancer and found this programme disturbing for many reasons. The first was Dawn Porter. I gradually became fed up with her self obsession with her own breasts. One especially momentus comment was her walking in the street and casually saying that she wasn’t so worried about dying as losing her breasts. What a completely selfish and pathetic thing to say. She kept going on about how she just couldn’t bear to lose her femininity!!! Oh hard luck love. Some of us don’t have that choice. I found her quite insensitive to those who were close to death and felt the tears were rather forced. I am aware that this programme was on sky one so was not intended to be serios viewing!!!! But I an afraid the subject matter dealt with should have been done so in a totally different way. I don’t know how the makers of the programme or dawn porter can sleep at night. There are those of us who are going through mastectomys in a few weeks and were looking for serious viewing for a serious condition.

By: glenda davies

glenda davies — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 21:24:18 +0000

I have had genetic testing for BC.I was told in writing that a BRCA gene was not found BUT and this was underlined that this did NOT mean that there was not one.Current tests are limited. Also family cancers may due to genes yet undiscovered.Although I thought the programme to be very good this information was misleading.A genetic test is not 100cent accurate.I would also like to know how tests results were obtained in eight weeks.