The Summerland Advocate-Messenger - Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community

Misty Nilson is of the opinion that women should take their breast cancer screenings seriously, especially if they have a family history of the disease.

The 54-year-old Ewing woman has been free of breast cancer for four years as of this October, which also happens to be breast cancer Awareness Month.

Because breast cancer runs in her family, Nilson began to undergo yearly screenings for the disease during her late 30s.

The American Cancer Society and other similar organizations recommend women should consider starting annual screenings at age 40.

Nilson recalled going, in September 2016, to Antelope Memorial Hospital in Neligh for her yearly breast cancer screening.

That appointment included a mammogram, which is an X-ray picture of the breasts that doctors use to look for early signs of breast cancer.

"I didn't know there was any problem when I went in," Nilson said. "They called me back and wanted me to come in for an ultrasound because they had detected something off."

The 3D breast ultrasound that she had done at the Neligh hospital led to her traveling to Lincoln twice for chest MRIs.

A chest MRI – which stands for magnetic resonance imaging – is "a painless imaging test that uses radio waves, magnets and a computer to create detailed pictures of the structures in your chest," according to the National Heart, Lung, and blood Institute.

After undergoing two MRIs and three biopsies, Nilson was diagnosed with Stage 1 breast cancer – an unexpected present she did not want for her 50th birthday.

"I had no clue I had cancer," Nilson said. "I didn't even know I had any lumps. Even after I knew I had them, I looked and felt around and I couldn't feel them. I don't remember any doctor feeling them either."

According to the National breast cancer Foundation, breast cancer is evident in a Stage 1 diagnosis, "but it is contained to only the area where the first abnormal cells began to develop."

That means "the breast cancer has been detected in the early stages and can be very effectively treated," according to the foundation.

On Oct. 5, 2016, Nilson met with an oncologist – a doctor who treats cancer – at the Neligh hospital to figure out her best option for battling the breast cancer.

She chose to undergo a double mastectomy – a risk-reducing surgery that removes both breasts – later that month in Norfolk.

"I went with a double mastectomy because the cancer that I had was one that will keep coming back," Nilson said. "I could take care of the lumps, they could do the radiation, but you'd have to be on constant watch because they'd grow back and keep growing back."

She felt fortunate the breast cancer had been caught early enough to be treated effectively.

"I lucked out because, like I said, I got my yearly check and then I went ahead and did the double mastectomy," Nilson said. "They knew there was cancer in one spot; that's the one they kept centering on."

After her surgery, doctors discovered there had been breast cancer that previously had gone undetected.

"It hadn't come up on the ultrasound, the mammogram or the MRIs," Nilson said. "There was more cancer in there that nobody saw."

Doctors had found the breast cancer on the left side of her chest.

"On the right side, they said the tissue was mush and was just on the verge of turning into cancer," Nilson said.

She decided the double mastectomy was the best option in her battle against breast cancer.

"I just didn't want to deal with it," Nilson said. "I knew what my aunt and my grandma had gone through because they had breast cancer and it went straight into the bones. They both died the same way."

Her mother, mother's sister and maternal grandmother all had breast cancer. She is the first one of her generation in the family to have dealt with the disease.

"It runs deep in my family; it's not hereditary," Nilson said. "My mom, my sister and I have all had genetic testing done and it all came back negative.

"My grandma and two of her sisters have died of breast cancer," she said. "My mom and my aunt have both had it. I think two of their cousins have had it."

In February 2017, Nilson underwent breast reconstruction surgery in Norfolk. She recalled that procedure hurt more than the double mastectomy.

"You wouldn't think it would be, but that was painful," Nilson said. "That was not a fun time."

Through everything she has dealt with, she has had a strong support system, including her five children: Dakota, Gage, Kyra, Talya and Taylen.

Nilson's younger sister, 52-year-old Shari Moore of Ewing, created an online GoFundMe Page for her in October 2016 to raise money to help pay for her medical expenses.

The K-12 special education teacher at Summerland Public School's Ewing site also has received support from the administration and her co-workers.

"They've been amazing," Nilson said. "The staff has been amazing. They're very supportive."

Even though her chances of developing breast cancer again are slimmer than what they used to be thanks to the double mastectomy, they are not completely gone.

"They can't scrape it completely clean," Nilson said. "They do a good job, but they can't get every cell out or every piece of tissue out."

In addition to visiting her oncologist every three to four months, she manually checks herself every month for any physical evidence that she may have developed breast cancer again.

"There's always a risk," Nilson said. "It's just a lot less. They can't completely take out all the tissue. You always have that risk."