Jon Gosselin's Girlfriend Colleen Conrad's Cancer Diagnosis Explained
Colleen Conrad, girlfriend of American television personality Jon Gosseli, revealed on Saturday that she has breast cancer. Conrad shared an Instagram post that detailed how she was diagnosed in April and had a single mastectomy last month (via Page Six).
"I went for a mammogram on 4/15," Conrad wrote on Instagram. "I had put it off for almost 2 1/2 yrs due to lack of time and Covid and later got a call that a mass was found in my right breast. Everything after that happened so fast. Then on 4/21, I got the call that is confirmed it was cancer. Stage 2, triple-negative breast cancer. I was BRCA1 and 2 negative. Everything seemed so surreal. I had a single mastectomy done on my right breast on 7/14/21 followed by a DIEP Flap procedure on 7/30/21 and I feel good. The DIEP flap was a personal choice for me."
Conrad said she is "still waiting" to hear if she'll need chemotherapy. She finished her post by explaining that she caught her cancer early after feeling a lump in her breast while in the shower. She urged her followers "not to put off your mammograms and do your monthly breast exams" because catching cancer early can be key to a successful recovery.
Triple-negative breast cancer makes up 10 to 20% of all breast cancer cases
Triple-negative breast cancer is cancer that tests negative for three of the main factors that often play a part in the disease. This includes the hormones estrogen and progesterone and a protein called HER2 (via American Cancer Society). Triple-negative breast cancer grows and spreads faster than many other types of breast cancer. It also has fewer treatment options.
Symptoms of this type of breast cancer include a swollen breast, skin dimpling on the breast, breast or nipple pain, nipple discharge, flaking or thickened breast tissue, and swollen lymph nodes (via Healthline). If you notice any of these symptoms, contact your doctor about a breast exam.
While many types of breast cancer are treated with hormone therapy, triple-negative breast cancer doesn't usually respond to those options. Treatment for this type of breast cancer includes radiation, chemotherapy, surgery, or a combination of the three. Surgery may involve a lumpectomy, where some of the breast tissue is removed, or a mastectomy, where one or both breasts are removed.