Photo By Jymi Bolden

Tracie Metzger is the mother of Hope.

When Tracie Metzger discovered a lump in her breast, her doctors advised her to wait at least six months to watch its progression. They told the mother of two small children that she was young, had no family history of breast cancer and had little risk for the disease.

If Metzger had listened to her doctors, she might not be here today. At age 30, she was diagnosed with stage-one breast cancer.

In the United States approximately 250,000 women younger than 40 are living with breast cancer. Another 11,000 will be diagnosed this year, of whom nearly 1,300 will die, according to the Young Survival Coalition (YSC).

With testing and prevention aimed at women over 40, many women in their 20s and 30s often ignore signs of trouble, believing breast cancer can only occur in older women.

"I never thought in my mind that it was breast cancer," Metzger says. "I just knew I had a foreign lump in my body and I wanted it taken out. They really didn't want to do anything for me. I had to demand to get tests run. I think back and, if I hadn't have done that and done what the doctors thought I should do, how different things would be today."

Because young women believe themselves to be at lower risk, breast cancer is often found in later stages, says Michelle Przypyszny, executive director of the YSC.

"It's usually detected later, so young women with breast cancer have a higher mortality rate," she says. "The cancer also tends to be more aggressive. Cancer cells reproduce and grow faster because cells in general reproduce faster in younger women."

Przypyszny says young women need to be their own health advocates.

"You know your own body and you know when something's not right," she says. "If one doctor refuses to send you for tests, go to another doctor. Keep pushing and be persistent until you finally get a doctor to take action."

Self-exams are the key to early detection, according to Przypyszny. She also advises young women to push for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) testing instead of mammograms, because breast tissue in younger women tends to be denser.

The YSC not only advocates education and awareness but also lobbies for greater research into the causes of breast cancer in young women. The organization sells an informational video, You Are Not Alone, for those recently diagnosed. The content covers issues such as treatments, nutrition, spirituality, reconstructive surgery, premature menopause, caring for young children, recovery and dating.

Since only 5 percent of all breast cancer cases occur in those younger than 40, Metzger says she had trouble relating her experience to women who were much older.

"Most of the women were my mom's age or my grandma's age," she says. "The issues are just a lot different when your kids are 6 and 8 months old versus someone whose kids are in college. So I wanted to find other young women out there for support."

In 2001 Metzger and fellow survivors Dawn Harvey and Jamie Hoffpauir started the Pink Ribbon Girls, a local support group dedicated to the issues and education of younger women with breast cancer. More than 100 women now belong, including survivors and those recently diagnosed.

The Pink Ribbon Girls is not a traditional "support group" structured around weekly meetings that participants must attend. The group instead holds monthly meetings and organizes events with speakers. The organization also offers support by sending maid and catering services to women too sick from chemotherapy or surgery to cook and clean.

Metzger, Harvey and Hoffpauir were honored Oct. 11 at the Breast Cancer Alliance's annual luncheon with the Award of Hope. The award normally goes to an individual, but "they got so many letters they decided to do the group," Metzger says.

Breast cancer survivor Kathy O'Leary says several co-workers and family members told her about the Pink Ribbon Girls.

"I'm not really into the support group thing, but everything just clicked," she says. "It was great. I really wasn't able to go to meetings or anything because the chemo kind of wiped me out, but they did keep e-mailing me."

Like Metzger, O'Leary says she never expected to be diagnosed with stage-three breast cancer in her early 30s. Besides chemotherapy, radiation and bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction, O'Leary recently underwent a hysterectomy after suspect cysts appeared on her ovaries.

Through it all, the 32-year-old says she's kept a positive attitude, even though her position was "conveniently eliminated" right after she returned to work.

"How's that one for you?" she says. "I'm unemployed, happy and optimistic. I'm just looking for my next opportunity. There are worse things."

Metzger, who is pregnant with her second child since breast cancer, says she shares O'Leary's positive outlook on life.

"Two years ago life was so miserable," she says. "But now, you know what? I feel good. Life can change on a dime. You just have to enjoy it while it's here, because you just don't know what tomorrow will bring."

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For more information on the Pink Ribbon Girls visit www.pinkribbongirls.org