Archives: Month: July 2025
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July 22, 2025
Why Slowing Down Matters: A Candid Conversation About DCIS Decisions
In this heartfelt interview, long-time DCIS patient advocate Donna Pinto speaks with Janet Gola, who speaks candidly about her nearly 26-year journey with DCIS—from her initial 1999 diagnosis through a second struggle in 2012, nine procedures, and a mastectomy that left her with PTSD. Janet shares critical wisdom for newly diagnosed patients, emphasizing the importance of slowing down, asking questions, and understanding your pathology report.
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July 18, 2025
Is It Safe to Wait? What a New Study Says About Delaying Surgery for DCIS
When you’re told you have ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), the instinct is often to treat it quickly and aggressively. But what if some DCIS doesn’t need immediate surgery at all? A new study published in The BMJ (British Medical Journal) suggests that for some women, waiting and watching may be a safe option. In this observational cohort study, researchers followed 1,780 women across the U.S. who were diagnosed with DCIS but chose not to have surgery within the first six months of diagnosis. The goal was to understand how many later developed invasive breast cancer and how many died from breast…
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July 10, 2025
Endocrine Therapy for 2+ Years May Be as Effective as Radiation for Some DCIS Patients
Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is often found through screening before it has a chance to spread. While this sounds reassuring, it leads to a tough question: how much treatment is enough? Most DCIS patients undergo surgery, often followed by radiation and/or hormone (endocrine) therapy. But not all DCIS is aggressive, and over-treating low-risk cases can cause unnecessary side effects. This new study, published in NPJ Breast Cancer, takes a fresh look at how long endocrine therapy needs to be taken—and whether it might offer similar protection as radiation. Researchers analyzed 1,916 patients from two large California cancer centers, with a…
