Beyond the Pink Ribbon 🎀

The truth about breast cancer screening and prevention.

Author

Jaylene + Aaron Patelzick
September 29, 2025

October is here. You know what that means: pink everything. Pink yogurt lids. Pink NFL gear. Pink ribbon campaigns telling you to "get your mammogram" and "support the cure."

But here's what they're not telling you: the screening methods we've been told are life-saving may be causing harm to healthy tissue—and the financial incentives driving these recommendations have nothing to do with your health.

I spent hours diving into the research and listening to Dr. Jenn Simmons, a former breast surgeon who walked away from conventional oncology to practice integrative medicine. What I found isn't just eye-opening—it's infuriating.

Her message cuts through decades of pink-washed marketing: "We cannot expose healthy tissue to toxins. Can't expose them to radiation. Can't expose them to gadolinium. It's the wrong thing to do."

She's not anti-screening. She's anti-unnecessary harm. And once you see what the studies actually show—and what the billion-dollar breast cancer industry doesn't want you to know—you can't unsee it.

So why are we routinely exposing millions of healthy women to radiation and toxic contrast agents? Why are safer alternatives being ignored? And who's profiting from keeping things exactly as they are?

Let's pull back the pink curtain.

What's Inside

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The Screening Industry's Dirty Secret

Here's what the pink ribbons don't tell you: mammograms and MRIs find structural changes that are already present. But because of breast density, growth patterns, and timing limitations, they're not always catching cancer early—and they're definitely not preventing it.

But here's the statistic that should make you pause: 20-30% of people who get mammograms and are diagnosed would have never developed clinical disease. Let that sink in. One in four to one in three people are being diagnosed and treated for something that would never have harmed them.

Dr. Simmons' position? We've been starting at the wrong place. Self-awareness and less invasive screening should come first—save the heavy artillery (radiation, contrast agents) for when initial screens actually indicate something to follow up on.

But that's not what's being sold to us during "awareness" month.

What the Studies Actually Show (And Why You Haven't Heard About It)

Long-term studies—including Swedish and Canadian research spanning decades—reveal something uncomfortable: when you introduce mass mammography screening, you do detect more breast cancers. But here's the problem: you're also detecting lesions that may never have progressed or caused harm.

This is called overdiagnosis. And it leads to overtreatment—surgeries, radiation, chemo—for conditions that might never have threatened someone's life.

Even Dr. Otis Brawley, the former Chief Medical Officer of the American Cancer Society, has said it plainly: while mammography has benefits, it's not perfect, and we've been overselling its power. But that nuanced message doesn't fit on a pink t-shirt, does it?

And there's more. A Swedish study found that women who had false-positive mammograms were at significantly higher long-term risk of developing breast cancer—not because the mammogram caused it, but because false positives may indicate underlying risk factors that were already there. Translation? The test isn't just "oops, our bad"—it's revealing something deeper about your risk that no one is following up on or explaining.

The "Harmless Dye" That Isn't

If you've ever had an MRI with contrast, you were probably told you're getting a "harmless dye." That's marketing, not medicine.

Gadolinium is a heavy rare-earth metal. It's supposed to be chelated so your body can excrete it. But the FDA now confirms—after years of patient advocacy and mounting evidence—that small amounts of gadolinium are retained in your brain, bones, and skin. Even if your kidneys function perfectly.

Has it been definitively linked to cancer? No. But research shows it triggers oxidative stress, inflammation, and tissue changes—the exact mechanisms that create environments for disease.

So why are we still calling it harmless? And why is repeated exposure considered routine?

Dr. Jenn's answer: It's not routine. It's risky. And it should only be used when the imaging result will directly change your treatment plan.

But how many of us have been asked that question before getting an MRI? How many doctors pause to consider whether the benefit outweighs the risk of repeated gadolinium exposure?

Dense Breasts: The Scare Tactic That Misses the Point

If you've been told you have "dense breasts" and left the appointment feeling broken or high-risk—let's clear something up right now.

Dense breast tissue is completely normal before menopause. Your breasts are biologically designed for lactation, so of course there's glandular tissue. You're not defective.

Here's what actually matters: during and after menopause, as estrogen declines, your breast tissue should undergo regression. You should see less density year after year. If that doesn't happen—if density persists—it's because there's inflammation driving it. And that's the risk factor. Not the density itself, but the inflammation behind it.

But instead of addressing root-cause inflammation, we're told to get more mammograms. More imaging. More exposure.

See the pattern?

Dr. Jenn's reframe: density is a clue, not a flaw. It should inform your strategy without making you feel afraid or blamed.

The Safer Alternatives They're Not Offering You

So if conventional screening has these risks and limitations, what are the alternatives?

Auria® Test — An at-home biomarker test using tear fluid that detects signals of disease earlier than imaging can. Non-invasive. No radiation. No contrast. (Use code DRJENN20 for 20% off)

QT Imaging / Breast Acoustic CT — The first non-invasive breast imaging that provides true 3D images down to a few hundred cells—without compression or radiation. The technology can systematically strip away normal tissue to expose masses deep within dense breast tissue. Available through Dr. Simmons' PerfeQTion centers.

These exist. Right now. So why isn't your doctor mentioning them?

How to Advocate When Your Doctor Pushes Back

Most people who start asking questions get bulldozed. So here's what to ask—and what to listen for:

1. "Which contrast agent will you use?"
Look for words like "macrocyclic" (better-lower levels retained) vs "linear" (higher retention). If they say "standard" or seem vague, ask specifically for the brand name and look it up yourself.

2. "What's its retention profile?"
They should acknowledge that some retention happens. If they say "it all leaves your body" or "completely safe," that's outdated information. The FDA confirmed retention is real.

3. "Will this result directly change my treatment plan?"
This is the big one. If the answer is "we just want to see" or "it's routine," push back: "What would you be looking for, and what would we do differently based on what you find?"

4. "Are there alternatives without contrast?"
Sometimes standard MRI (without gadolinium) or ultrasound can give enough information.

If you feel bulldozed, it's okay to say: "I'd like to think about this and get back to you." You don't have to decide in the moment. A good doctor will respect that. A defensive one will make you question yourself.

Trust your gut.

The Real Battlefield: Metabolic Health (And Why Your Doctor Knows Nothing About It)

Beyond screening tools, Dr. Simmons stresses that metabolic health is where prevention happens. Here's what most people don't realize: metabolic dysfunction is the precursor to breast cancer—and to chronic disease in general.

Think about this: 80% of our exposure to the outside world comes through what we eat and drink. Food is medicine. What you put in your body is your biggest connection to the environment around you.

So how much training do doctors get in nutrition? Dr. Jenn went to one of the top medical schools in the country. Want to guess?

15 hours. In the first year of medical school. And then never again.

That's it. 15 hours of nutrition training to treat a population where 80% of environmental exposure comes from food. Does that make sense to you?

Chronic inflammation, insulin resistance, and toxin exposure create the environment where cancer thrives. But we're not talking about that in October, are we? We're talking about mammograms and fundraising walks.

Prevention at the root: Sleep well. Eat in rhythm with your circadian clock—as the sun goes down, close the kitchen. Our metabolism drops as the day progresses, and at night our bodies are designed to detoxify, not digest. Move. Manage stress.

And here's the piece that ties it all together: fasting is the fastest way to healing because that's when our cells clean up, regenerate, and decide which cells to repair or destroy. For women of childbearing age, honor your cycle—there are times of the month you'll tolerate fasting and times you won't. As you get older and move past menopause, your body can handle longer fasting periods. The key? We should all be eating with the sun and fasting overnight. That's how you protect your cells.

Here's what actually builds health: good food, clean water, being outside, meaningful connections and relationships, living with purpose, prioritizing sleep, and living in circadian rhythm.

But here's the problem: you can't trademark any of that. There's no company that can make money off you being in the sunshine or eating whole foods. So instead, we get pink ribbons and pharmaceutical solutions.

The Tamoxifen Trap: When the "Cure" Causes Cancer

Let's talk about something that should outrage you: Tamoxifen, the drug commonly prescribed to women with premenopausal hormone-positive breast cancer, actually causes cancer.

Tamoxifen blocks the ER alpha receptor. You know what else blocks the ER alpha receptor? Melatonin. Luteolin. Green tea. Genistein (found in soy).

But here's the difference: you can't trademark melatonin. You can't trademark green tea. You can't trademark molecules of nature. So pharmaceutical companies created a synthetic version, called it medicine, and prescribed it to millions of women—even though it comes with cancer risk.

Meanwhile, natural substances that block the same receptor and build health instead of causing harm? Those don't get mentioned in oncology appointments.

Why? Because there's no profit margin.

This is the same reason bioidentical hormones get demonized while synthetic hormones are called "safe." You can't patent a molecule that exists in nature. So the narrative becomes "hormones cause cancer" (they don't—that's a myth), and synthetic versions like Tamoxifen get pushed instead.

Around the world, substances like reishi mushroom and turkey tail mushroom are included in cancer protocols. In the United States? They're dismissed. Not because they don't work—but because you can't trademark them.

📌 Quick Takeaways

✓ Know your normal. Monthly self-checks matter—changes are more important than labels.

✓ Ask smart questions. Have you noticed a change in your monthly self-breast exams? Ask: "Where can I access QT Imaging or other radiation-free options?" If conventional imaging or contrast is suggested: "How will this change my care? What alternatives exist?"

✓ Protect metabolic health. Sleep, circadian eating, movement, stress management—that's prevention.

Whether you're a mom, daughter, sister, partner, or someone who cares about the people you love—you deserve to know what's really going on behind the pink curtain.

This October, let's talk about what actually prevents breast cancer. Not just what detects it after the damage is already done.

What surprised you most? What are you going to do differently? Hit reply—we'd love to hear from you.

Keep syncing, keep thriving,

Jaylene

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