WILTON, Iowa — There’s nothing funny about cancer.

Or is there?

Wilton resident Denise Horner said she, her family and friends found plenty of reasons to laugh after she was diagnosed with inflammatory breast cancer in August of 2006.

When chemotherapy caused her hair to fall out, Horner’s friends and children greeted her with panty hose over their heads.

And the Rev. James Vrba of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Wilton said she was welcome to wear a baseball cap during services to cover her head, especially if it had a Cubs insignia.

“He said, ‘They (the Cubs) need all the help they can get,’” said Horner.

And when she went for her first mammography after having a modified, radical mastectomy, Horner joked about getting the service half price.

The thoughtful things people did for her along the way filled Horner’s heart with hope.

A friend gave her the book, “There’s No Place Like Hope: A Guide to Beating Cancer in Mind-Sized Bites,” by Vickie Girard, shortly after doctors diagnosed Horner on Aug. 3, 2006.

“It says ‘You are not a survivor when you are cancer free. You are a survivor the day you are diagnosed,’” said Horner. “That helped me along.”

Horner also took comfort in the new recliner she received from her daughter Erica’s volleyball team.

Horner said her children, Jared, 20, Erica, 17 and Trey, 11, and her husband Steve, 43, were a solid source of support and encouragement throughout her illness. And she’s deeply grateful to her friends and the community members who provided meals and encouragement.

On Thursday, Horner, 43, sat in her office in the Bandag Learning Center where she works for the Involta Corp., punctuating the story of her experience with tears and laughter.

But she’s serious about letting people know about the aggressive form of breast cancer she developed.

Horner knew something was

wrong in July 2006 when severe breast pain woke her up in the middle of the night.

Soon, she discovered the nipple on her left breast was inverting and the skin on the areola had an orange peel-like texture.

“It felt like the breast was hard and getting bigger,” Horner recalled. Later, she realized her left breast had increased by two full cup sizes.

But it was the pain that sent Horner to the doctor where a biopsy detected inflammatory breast cancer, a form of cancer that accounts for five percent of breast cancer cases.

Horner had had a mammogram about a year before she began experiencing symptoms of cancer, and that test hadn’t revealed the problem. Horner said doctors use a biopsy of the skin and underlying tissue to diagnose inflammatory breast cancer because it is difficult to detect on a mammogram.

Inflammatory breast cancer is not caused by an inflammation or infection, Horner said. It occurs when cancer cells clog the lymphatic vessels in the skin overlying the breast. The blockage in the lymphatic vessels causes the red, swollen and dimpled skin that’s a classic sign of inflammatory breast cancer, Horner said.

Never alone

Horner said her friends and family were with her every step of the way as she underwent surgery in August 2006 and completed chemotherapy and radiation treatments.

During the treatments, her father, Duane Smith of Thompson, Ill., died unexpectedly in November 2006.

She said she and her father became very close after the diagnosis of cancer and she now treasures the time they had together during his final months.

As Horner was having a fourth round of chemotherapy, one of her friends who had been diagnosed with breast cancer two years earlier had a recurrence of the disease.

“We got a group together and went to the annual “Race for the Cure,” race in June,” said Horner. “It was such a cool day.”

Horner’s most recent chemotherapy treatment was in December 2006 and she finished radiation therapy in March.

“In April, I had a set of scans and they were clean,” said Horner. “That was very exciting.”

Horner said her friend who had the recurrence of breast cancer had a scan two weeks ago and her results were clean, too.

“NED has become her friend too,” said Horner, referring to the acronym for the phrase, “No Evidence of Disease.”

In June, Horner’s breast area began to swell again and doctors removed a mass of blood and tissue which was not cancerous. Horner said her doctors aren’t sure why the mass developed.

Her most recent checkup was this month, and she was doing well.

She said recent research shows that the five-year survival rate for inflammatory breast cancer is 40-45 percent and one third of people diagnosed survive 10 years or more.

Horner didn’t ask her doctor for a prognosis.

“It’s not going to make any difference in how I live my life,” said Horner. “I believe when it’s my time, it’s going to be my time.”

The Rev. Vrna at St. Mary’s Catholic Church said Horner’s attitude reflects joy and hope to those around her.

“She has a lot of courage,” said Vrna. “There’s a real strength that comes from her, and that’s what impresses me most about her.”

Horner dwells on the positive things that happened because of her experience with cancer, especially the outpouring of love and concern she received during her illness.

“I always knew I was blessed,” she said. “But this reiterated it.”

Now she’s encouraging others as an advocate for the Inflammatory Breast Cancer Research Organization.

“Our organization is the only non-profit where funds go directly to research effort for inflammatory breast cancer and raising awareness,” said Horner. “So many people have not heard of this and we need to get the word out.”

Horner said inflammatory breast cancer is often misdiagnosed as an infection. When antibiotics don’t relieve symptoms of swelling, pain and redness, it is important to seek more treatment quickly, she said. Because it is such an aggressive cancer, early treatment is vital for the best possible outcome.

Horner invites people who want to learn more about inflammatory breast cancer to call her at 1-563-260-8238.

Reporter contact information

Cynthia Beaudette 563-262-0527

cynthia.beaudette@muscatinejournal.com

Online:

Learn more about inflammatory breast cancer at http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/inflammatory-breast-cancer/BR00020 and www.ibcresearch.org

Typical Symptoms of inflammatory breast cancer

 Swelling, usually sudden, sometimes a cup size in a few days

 Itching

 Pink, red, or dark colored area (called erythema) sometimes with texture similar to the skin of an orange, called peau d’orange.

 Ridges and thickened areas of the skin

 What appears to be a bruise on the breast that does not go away

 Nipple retraction

 Nipple discharge, may or may not be bloody

 Breast is warm to the touch

 Breast pain, from a constant ache to stabbing pains

 Change in color and texture of the areola

Source: Inflammatory Breast Cancer Research Foundation