Breast cancer survivor shares how early screening saved her life at 37

NEWNAN, Ga. - A Georgia oncology nurse and advocate is marking 11 years of living cancer-free after an early mammogram saved her life.

Early breast cancer diagnosis

What we know:

LaKeitha Rousseau is celebrating 11 years as a breast cancer survivor after being diagnosed with Stage 1 breast cancer at age 37. At the time of her diagnosis, the recommended age for routine screening mammograms was 45, though it has since been lowered to 40.

Rousseau had no family history of breast cancer and showed no physical symptoms. "Nothing. No pain, no indentation, no breast leakage. All the stuff we tell our patients to look for. I had absolutely none of that," Rousseau said.

Her gynecologist advocated directly with her medical insurance company to cover a mammogram despite her age. Rousseau explained that a lump was hiding behind dense fatty tissue, making it undetectable without imaging.

"I think I had God on my side. That's all I can say, because technically I wasn't supposed to get approved,"  Rousseau explained."There was nothing to, you know, prove that there was something wrong with me other than me thinking something was wrong with me."

By the numbers:

According to the American Cancer Society, approximately 10% of breast cancer diagnoses occur in women under 45, while fewer than 1% to 2% of male breast cancer cases occur in men under 40.

Breast cancer affects millions of individuals globally each year across different demographics:

• Annual global cases: Nearly 2.5 million women worldwide receive a breast cancer diagnosis every year.
• Younger women: About 10% of breast cancer diagnoses occur in women under age 45, according to the American Cancer Society. In Georgia, more than 10,000 women are expected to be diagnosed with breast cancer this year.
• Men under 40: Fewer than 1% to 2% of male breast cancer cases occur in men under age 40.
• Male diagnosis trends: The number of men diagnosed with breast cancer worldwide has doubled over the past three decades.

Physician patient advocacy

What they're saying:

Rousseau credited her doctor's persistence for saving her life. 

"He had been my gynecologist since I was about 19, when I had my first child. So he knew I never complained about anything unless there was something really going on," Rousseau said. "For him to go to bat for me, it was major because that was a matter of life and death for me, really, because had he not gotten that mammogram for me, I may not be here in front of you today."

Dr. Natika Sharma of City of Hope Cancer Center emphasized that most breast cancers occur in individuals without a family history. She stressed the importance of medical providers advocating for coverage when younger patients show changes or symptoms.

"The fact that we are seeing increasing incidence of breast cancer in younger individuals, that is where we have to, you know, convince the insurance that, the patient in front of us are having new or change in symptoms, where we believe that this could be a possibly the breast cancer could be a possible cause of these symptoms and require further evaluation," Sharma said.

Unidentified research variables

What we don't know:

Medical researchers have not identified the exact underlying causes behind the rising incidence of breast cancer in younger adults.

It remains unclear how insurance approval policies vary across different providers when doctors request early screening for asymptomatic patients.

Community outreach mission

What's next:

Now working as an oncology nurse, Rousseau uses her experience to educate others during Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October.

"I feel amazing," Rousseau said. "I live my life out loud. I go out in a community, I do outreach for breast cancer. I do outreach for prostate cancer. I just try to help others make sure that their health is their priority."