My name is Kristen. I was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer at the age of 33.

About 4 years ago I started noticing pain in my back, neck, and hips during physical therapy for an unrelated problem. My therapist suggested I try a doctor he had heard about in Chicago. He diagnosed me with Fibromyalgia and started me on a regimen of medication. He never used any lab tests or X-rays to determine his findings. I continued to decline and saw my primary care doctor regularly. He treated my pain with warm, moist heat and manipulation of my neck and back. In 2001, during my regular exam, a physicians assistant noticed a lump in my left breast just about under my armpit. My youngest sister has what they consider fibrocystic breast disease and I told the physician''''s assistant that. She said I should not worry-women in their 20s and 30s don''''t get cancer. She and my doctor let it go at that.

When my insurance enrollment came around again in 2002, I switched primary care doctors. My new primary care physician told me that I had severe Fibromyalgia and that even though my blood test showed elevated levels of calcium in my blood and my liver function was abnormal, I should drink more water and take less medication. After a dream trip to Hawaii in May 2002, my conditioned worsened rapidly. In November 2002, my husband drove me to St. Josephs Hospital in Marshfield, WI. After a simple blood test and some x-rays, they found my cancer.

In all, I had seen a doctor in Chicago, 2 primary care doctors, 2 chiropractors, a rheumatologist, had several emergency room visits with severe back pain, and even went to our local urgent care center. My doctor in Marshfield figures that I had had cancer since I was 25. During the course of my treatment, my vertebrae in my neck and back collapsed and left me a partial paraplegic. I have metastatic cancer in my skull, ribs, femurs, shoulders, hips, and holes in my pelvis. My doctor says that I probably have lesions literally from head to toe.

I have been in remission since May 27, 2003. I continue on a maintenance dose of Herceptin every 3 weeks, a Lupron shot every 3 months, and Zometa every six weeks. My future is unknown at this point because most of my doctors felt I wouldn''''t survive this long. I just want others to beware of the pitfalls of false diagnoses and the general indifference to female patients. I was treated as a hysterical female with PMS and too much stress. This was so far from the truth.