Shellie, thank you for sharing your story... I am new to this board but have had breast cancer. My breast cancer was also missed by my yearly mammogram and I found a lump 7 months after my "clear" outcome. I was being checked in a breast diagnostic center in a large city but my breasts were also dense so I am sure the cancer had been missed by a year or two. Your story and mine are not that uncommon. Mammograms are not infallable. My advise to any woman who has dense breast tissue and has any kind of pain or something out of the ordinary needs to demand an MRI or some other diagnostic tool. When I finally had an MRI, the cancer showed up like a light bulb. I was diagnosed with Stage 2B IDC 1 node positive. ER+
PR+ Her2-. Mastectomy, 4 rounds of AC chemo, and 5 years of hormone blocking Femara. You and I did what we were supposed to do and the medical community failed us. I have found.... and I know you have too, you have to be your own best advocate. We are far from alone in this. I know another woman on another board who was also mis-diagnosed and she is going through treatment for her Stage 3C breast cancer.
Shellie, I am sure we have many "sisters" out there who could add to the stories. I hope there comes a time when an MRI is a standard for women with dense breast tissue.
Thanks again for bringing up your story. It allowed me to "vent" my frustration.
How are you doing now? I am coming up on my 5 year anniversary and will complete the hormone blocking therapy in January. Take care, Sharon
My breast cancer WAS PAINFUL thus delaying diagnosis!! 
Sitting here this a.m....thinking about the events that have played out in my life in the past week I decided to share a portion of my own exp. in an effort to hopefully help others. So here goes....
Shellie
