Newark mom says breast cancer misdiagnosed as skin condition for 2 years

NEWARK, N.J. (PIX11) -- During Breast Cancer Awareness Month, a Newark mother is advocating for women to speak up after her own cancer was misdiagnosed as eczema for two years.

Jeanelle Adams, then 33 years old, first experienced symptoms in June 2020 with a rash on her breast.

“I went to my primary [care doctor] and my primary said, 'Oh, it’s just eczema,'" said Adams.

Adams said the eczema did not clear up with any creams, so she then went to a dermatologist.

“The dermatologist shot me up with some steroids and nothing happened,” said Adams.

Two dermatologists, two breast specialists, and two years later, Adams still did not have answers, but the rash progressively got worse. She said when she suggested breast cancer, she was dismissed.

“One of the doctors was like, you’re young - it would never be that,” said Adams.

Adams finally convinced one of her doctors to give her a referral for a mammogram. Days after testing, she received a diagnosis.

“It was Stage 3, triple-negative breast cancer,” said Adams.

She endured 23 rounds of chemotherapy before undergoing a double mastectomy, followed by immunotherapy. She is convinced the cancer would have been caught earlier if she was someone else.

“People believe that it’s an old white woman disease,” said Adams.

“Because I’m Black, I’m Puerto Rican, I dress a certain way and maybe because I talk a certain way that physicians believe that I don’t necessarily know what’s going on with my own body,” said Adams.

She wants doctors to take seriously young women of color. “I don’t ever want you to tell another young woman that they can’t get breast cancer or they shouldn’t get a mammogram,” said Adams.

She also wants women to speak up for themselves and their health care.

“I just want people to know that you can advocate for yourself through everything,” said Adams. “That’s really my message through it all, to be honest - just take care of yourself.”