Woman Opens up About Surprising Symptom Months Before Breast Cancer Diagnosis

The 38-year-old university professor recalled going through what she thought was an extreme version of a minor illness for months before discovering she had breast cancer.

Kelly Mann is reflecting on the "mind-blowing" symptoms she experienced two months before she received her breast cancer diagnosis in 2023. The Texas-based mom of three initially believed she was coming down with "the worst pink-eye" of her life.

She had redness in both her eyes, and the antibiotic she was using did little to alleviate her pain. But, just as mysteriously as it appeared, the issue resolved on its own within a week. A few days later, the symptoms returned, beginning a cycle that would re-occur six times between April and June.

"Then one night while watching TV, I went to itch my arm and felt a lump," Mann told Today. "My husband was asleep, so I kind of panicked and went back and forth, like, 'Is this what I'm really feeling, or am I making this up in my head?'"

The next morning, she checked for the lump again and immediately booked a doctor's appointment. After a mammogram and biopsy, she received the devastating news. Just a week before her 36th birthday, in late July, she was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer.

"I was, obviously, devastated," she shared. Mann had just gone to a well woman visit that April, which included a breast exam. "My tumor grew from being completely undetectable to 2 and a half centimeters in about six to eight weeks."

She soon began undergoing chemotherapy and additional targeted therapies to treat the specific type of breast cancer she had. Just as she started treatment, however, the pink-eye symptoms returned.

"After my first chemo, I had the same pink eye situation pop up again," she recalled. "I was so frustrated, and it was one of the worst versions of it." She sought medical advice from her ophthalmologist friend and learned that her symptoms were not actually caused by pink eye.

Instead, it was a condition called episcleritis, which is an inflammation of the clear layer tissue that covers your eye. While it sometimes doesn't have an identifiable cause, it can be triggered by other illnesses, including lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

There are also limited case studies of cancer patients developing the condition either potentially as a result of the cancer or treatment. "Your eye, being an organ, will respond in unique ways to things happening in your body," Mann explained.

Her doctor warned that she would likely experience episcleritis throughout her treatment. "Episcleritis was my first real, tangible symptom that I had," she said. "I thought it was fascinating and also crazy and mind-blowing that your body really does know what's going on far before any normal diagnostics could make sense of it."

Mann went on to undergo 12 rounds of chemotherapy, followed by a bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction at the end of 2023. In March 2024, she went for her exchange surgery, which involved replacing her temporary expanders with permanent implants.

She continued receiving targeted therapies to treat the cancer through to October 2024, and documented her journey to recovery on social media. Mann, who is now undergoing preventative treatment, admitted that her journey was difficult, and found the chemo side effects particularly taxing.

Still, despite how challenging her experience has been, she was reminded of her strength and ability to power through something. Plus, with her three children watching and worrying for her, giving up was not an option.