TV news anchor Kristen Dahlgren shares personal story of almost missing lesser-known breast cancer symptom

'If one person is saved by that, then it makes it worth it to share my struggle'

NBC News correspondent Kristen Dahlgren has shared the lesser-known breast cancer symptom she noticed that led to her diagnosis, in the hope that other women will benefit from the information.

According to Dahlgren, who was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer in 2016 after finding a “dent” in her right breast, she learned to look out for symptoms other than lumps while reporting on a story about the disease - an assignment she now credits with “saving” her life.

“I was sent to Rochester, Minnesota, to interview a doctor at the Mayo Clinic for what I thought was a routine assignment,” Dahlgren wrote in a feature for Today. “A research study from the UK had found that around one in six women diagnosed with breast cancer went to the doctor with a symptom other than a lump.

“While lumps are still the most commonly reported symptom of breast cancer, this study identified other signs such as nipple changes, dents, dimples, pain or redness.”

In the article, Dahlgren recalls interviewing a woman who noticed a change in the shape of her breast but was only diagnosed with breast cancer after seeking a second doctor’s opinion.

“‘It's profoundly important to be aware of your breasts,’ Dr Deborah Rhodes, an internist with Mayo Breast Diagnostic Clinic, told me. I remember thinking that the story would save lives,” Dahlgren said, adding: “I had no idea the life it would save would be my own.”

According to Dahlgren, on her 47th birthday, shortly after reporting on the story, she noticed a “slight dent in [her] right breast” - despite not having a family history of the disease and a recent mammogram coming back negative.

Underneath the dent, Dahlgren recalled feeling something she described as “thickening”.

Despite being busy with work reporting on a hurricane in North Carolina, Dahlgren said she couldn’t get the “study about unusual symptoms out of [her] mind”.

In between working, the TV anchor says she ran to the local hospital, where she had a mammogram and ultrasound.

“Within days, I was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer,” she wrote.

According to Dahlgren, since then her life has been filled with “doctor appointments, chemotherapy, and yes, tears” but she wanted to share her story because “there is power in knowledge”.

“If I hadn't done that story, I might have ignored the change in my breast. I might have assumed a mammogram would have picked up cancer,” she said. “I have since learned they are only 87 per cent effective and are less sensitive in women like me with dense breast tissue. I might not have gotten another mammogram for a while. I hate to admit it, but I had let years go between screenings in the past.”

In addition to lumps, the NHS recommends seeing a GP if you notice any of the following: thickened tissue that was not there before, a change in the size or shape of one or both breasts, a discharge of fluid from either of your nipples, a lump or swelling in either of your armpits, dimpling on the skin of your breasts, a rash on or around your nipple, or a change in the appearance of your nipple, such as becoming “sunken into your breast”.

Dahlgren concluded her story explaining the importance of visiting a doctor, even if the symptoms turn out to be nothing.

“I end 2019 full of gratitude, knowing there is a long road ahead, but hopeful that sharing my story might make a difference for someone else,” she wrote.

Read more about how to check your breasts for cancer symptoms here.