Author Archives: Donna Pinto

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About Donna Pinto

After being diagnosed with DCIS in 2010, Donna transformed her personal journey into a mission of advocacy and education. She became an investigative journalist and patient advocate, later earning certification as a nutritionist. As a nonprofit founder, author, speaker, blogger, and podcaster, Donna has dedicated over 15 years to empowering women with knowledge and support. Through her website, DCIS 411, she shares insights on DCIS overdiagnosis and overtreatment, safer breast imaging alternatives, and holistic strategies for achieving optimal health—impacting thousands of women worldwide.

EVERY WOMAN NEEDS TO READ THIS….

Posted on March 14, 2012 by Donna Pinto

What you always wanted to know about breast screening published by The Nordic Cochrane Centre 201: http://www.cochrane.dk/screening/mammography-leaflet.pdf I have been to several Breast Cancer Centers over the last two years and I have been wondering why they all seem to be … Continue reading →

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Mammograms???

Posted on March 13, 2012 by Donna Pinto

I feel I am one of thousands of women who have been over-treated and harmed by mammograms. I believe our society and most breast cancer organizations put way too much emphasis, money and marketing on mammograms and not enough on … Continue reading →

Posted in Health, Options, Personal Stories, Resources | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

BS stands for Blue Shield

Posted on March 12, 2012 by Donna Pinto

Dr. Esserman ordered the Oncotype DX Test for me over 1 month ago (see post “What is Oncotype DX?”) Today I received Blue Shield’s denial letter stating: “A physician advisor has reviewed the information provided and determined that the requested service … Continue reading →

Posted in Options, Personal Stories, Resources | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

What Is Oncotype DX?

Posted on March 11, 2012 by Donna Pinto

Oncotype DX is the first clinically validated commercial genomic assay for patients with DCIS. Oncotype DX reveals the underlying biology that can help guide DCIS treatment decisions by predicting the risk of any local recurrence of breast cancer (DCIS or … Continue reading →

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Helplessness Feeds Cancer

Posted on February 23, 2012 by Donna Pinto

I recently read an exceptional book called AntiCancer: A New Way of Life by Dr. David Servan-Schreiber. The book begins with Dr. Servan-Schreiber  telling his fascinating story of how he discovered his own brain tumor after scanning his brain while working on his PhD in … Continue reading →

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Dr. Esserman Touts Tamoxifen

Posted on February 9, 2012 by Donna Pinto

Armed with a list of questions, I enthusiastically flew to San Francisco to hear what  Dr. Esserman had to say about my DCIS situation and her recommendations for risk reduction and monitoring.  After waiting 2 hours in the lobby and … Continue reading →

Posted in Options, Personal Stories, Resources | Tagged , , , , | 19 Comments

The Insanity of DCIS Surgery

Posted on February 6, 2012 by Donna Pinto

I am astonished at the way in which DCIS surgeries are performed…it is unacceptable and we must find a better way than to blindly hack at women’s breasts 2-3 times and then tell them they need a mastectomy because clear … Continue reading →

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Excellent News — MRI Results are All Clear!

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Donna Pinto

Dr. Stephen Feig, Professor of Radiology and Director of Breast Imaging at UC Irvine, gave me the results of my Aurora RODEO MRI today. He said, “nothing suspicious — see you in a year!” 🙂 To learn more about Aurora … Continue reading →

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My Choice for NO RADIATION & NO MORE MAMMOGRAMS

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Donna Pinto

“The most benign-appearing forms of DCIS (for example, low nuclear grade, small-celled without necrosis, estrogen- and progesterone-receptor positive,c-erbB2 negative, etc.), if untreated, may never cause clinical disease. Less than 50% of low-grade lesions develop into invasive breast cancer over a 25- … Continue reading →

Posted in Options, Personal Stories, Resources | Tagged , , , | 24 Comments

NY Times Article: Breast Cancer Surgery Rules Are Called Unclear

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Donna Pinto

Fascinating article regarding margins and re-excisions….. “there is no evidence that a margin any bigger than “not touching ink” affects cancer recurrence or survival, said Dr. Morrow” http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/01/health/repeat-breast-cancer-surgery-guidelines-found-unclear.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1

Posted in Resources | 2 Comments