Cork woman urges breast cancer checks after surprise diagnosis

Ottoline Spearman

A Cork woman from Ballinspittle who survived breast cancer has said that her diagnosis three years ago was completely unexpected.

Mother of two, 55-year-old Anna Hickey, was diagnosed in November 2023 after a routine mammogram, which had been delayed due to Covid.

“My routine over-50 breast scan was delayed," Hickey told the Irish Times.

"So when I finally had it done in August 2023, something showed up and I was called back for another check.”

Hicket had a third mammogram, an ultrasound and a biopsy and was diagnosed with an early form of breast cancer, ductal carcinoma in situ.

“This would not have been picked up if I’d had my mammogram on the original date, and then by the time I went for another one, it would have been a very different outcome,” she said.

“When they told me initially, I said that they must have made a mistake, it wasn’t possible that I had cancer as I didn’t have any symptoms.”

Speaking on Daffodil Day, an annual campaign to raise money for the Irish Cancer Society, Hickey told Newstalk about the importance of self-checks and mammograms.

"My surgeon was very clear if he did a physical exam, he would not have found the cancer.

"So whatever checks people are doing themselves, if you find any sign of a lump or a pressure or any of the signs of breast cancer, absolutely go.

"The mammograms are available to everybody at any age, if you have a reason for one."

The signs of breast cancer vary depending on the type, but according to the Irish Cancer society, symptoms can include:

• A lump or thickening in your breast or armpit
• A change in size or shape of your breast such as one breast becoming larger than the other
• A change in the skin of your breast
• A change in your nipple

The Irish Cancer Society also says on its website that breast pain alone is rarely a symptom of breast cancer, but it is always best to talk to your doctor.

Thousands of volunteers will be on the streets around the country on Friday, asking for donations for the Irish Cancer Society.

Around 44,000 people are diagnosed with cancer each year in Ireland.

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