so I would make the arrangements. It took a little over two months to get an appointment for a mammogram. See Lesson One – be persistent!
On Friday, September 14, 2001, I arrived at the local Breast Care Center for the mammogram. Women have individual experiences with a mammogram. For some, there is pain due to the squishing of the breast. Maybe squish is a harsh word, but it seems to me to be the most accurate! For others, there is slight discomfort. Let’s face it, they are taking a body part and making it one third of its natural size so, yes, there is discomfort associated with this process. Yet, others don’t feel much of anything. I haven’t personally met any of those women, but the statistics show they do exist. Whatever your level of pain or discomfort, it lasts less than five minutes, and can truly save your life – it is worth the time and effort!! Back to Lesson One!
I am one of the women who feel some slight discomfort. The process went quickly and I went on my merry way. I look back now and realize how very close I was to canceling that mammogram appointment. I was leaving town to visit my family in Ohio and attend a family reunion. I wanted to leave a day early, but decided I should stay the extra day and not cancel the mammogram. I am so thankful now that I kept THAT appointment!
I went on my visit to Ohio and returned Sunday night. On Monday I received a call that there was “an area of distortion” on my mammogram and they wanted me to come in for another check. I thought it simply meant that one of the films was messed up and they just wanted another Kodak moment with my breasts.
Since this was a follow-up to an abnormal mammy, (by this time we all know what it is called so let’s shorten it to mammy) the follow-up exam was scheduled for Thursday of that week, September 20, 2001.
Meeting Dr. G
When I arrived, I went through the usual “undress from the waist up, put the gown on and wait in the booth until we call your name”. The technician came to get me and the appropriate photos were taken. I was just hoping they got my good side. The technician then took me into another room to meet with a doctor to get an ultrasound. Hmm, this wasn’t going the same way they usually do – I knew something was not quite right, but I was hoping they were just being extra careful.
I jumped up onto the table as instructed. All right I know you can’t “jump” in those gowns without falling out, so I gingerly stepped on the step stool and “scooched” onto the table! The doctor arrived; I will refer to him as Dr. G to maintain his privacy. He was a good-looking guy so I thought, “Well, the time spent isn’t a complete loss,” and he indicated that the mammy had actually picked up something that he wanted to check out with the ultrasound. I still wasn’t concerned.
He did the ultrasound on the “inny” breast and asked me to go ahead and put the gown back on so we could talk about the results. I didn’t even realize I was only half dressed. What he was doing was really interesting. In fact, the whole process was really interesting; I just wish we were talking about someone else!!
He showed me the film from the previous year and what they were picking up on the current mammy. There was a small area circled that was the “area of concern”. Had it not been circled, I don’t know that I would have even noticed the difference. It didn’t look like a lump or bump, but more like a tiny explosion on the film. He told me he didn’t know exactly what he was looking at, but knew that if he took a needle biopsy and it came back negative he really wouldn’t believe the results. Thank goodness he was a doubter!!! He said he wanted me to see a surgeon, and he expected the surgeon to suggest a surgical biopsy to see exactly what we were dealing with in the “inny” breast.
I mentioned that I had gone to see a Dr. B for another unrelated question a few years ago, and although I had only seen him briefly at that time, I thought I would go back to see him. Dr. G told me that he had a great deal of respect for Dr. B and that Dr. B was one of the best. That certainly gave me a little more comfort coming from one breast guy about another.
When I mentioned that I had noticed the change from perky to “inny” over the past year, he expressed his concern that we might be looking at a small cancer under the nipple that was pulling it in. Okay, okay, he now had my full attention and I had passed the threshold from a casual observer to an actively involved concerned participant. (I did not know at the time that this is one of the possible red flags of breast cancer. I have added some other possible red flags in the section at the back of this book for your reference.)
He said the results would go to Dr. B’s office and I should make an appointment to see him as soon as possible. There was a little bit of trouble going through the telephone tangle maze, but hey, we all deal with the “Press One or Two or Three or Forty-five syndrome!” After finally getting that taken care of I had the necessary appointment with Dr. B for five days later.
The “Pinkie Swear”
When I went back to work after the ultrasound and realized that things may be changing in my life, I stopped to see one of my best friends and made her take a “pinky swear”. If any of you out there don’t know what that is, let me explain. You curl your little pinky with another person’s pinky and make a “swear” about something. Does this sound juvenile to you? Yes, it is something from grade school, but for me it was a visual reminder of the support I was asking for from her. The “pinky swear” pact that we made was that if this turned out to be something bad, she had to swear to me that there would be no pity, and she would do her very best to keep me laughing throughout the coming months.
This tiny gesture served as a wonderful reminder to both of us over the next few days that if it was a “biggie” diagnosis, we both understood that we couldn’t change it and I really, really needed her there for support, positive encouragement, and laughter.
The time between Thursday and Tuesday was spent thinking, reflecting, and talking, but most importantly, WRITING down the questions I wanted to ask during my upcoming appointment with Dr. B. Writing down the questions is one area where I cannot emphasize the importance enough (see Lesson 12). I personally found a lot of information available on the internet. With this situation, and many others, there is a ton of information out there that you have to sift through to find out what has merit.
If you are dealing with a similar situation and do not have computer access, you can always visit the library or ask someone to assist you with this research. No matter what level of knowledge you are coming in at, you owe it to yourself to be an informed patient. This knowledge will help you to not only understand what is happening in your body, but also what the doctors are telling you, and most importantly, as we will discuss in much greater detail later, being informed allows you to make your own decisions.
As you may know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness month across the nation. It seemed that everywhere I went there were pink ribbons and posters about breast cancer awareness. Trust me; at this point I was VERY aware of breast cancer, yet so thankful for that awareness as I believe it did indeed save my life!! If I had not pushed to have the tests done, the outcome could have been completely different, and you may not have had the opportunity to read this fascinating (tee-hee) book!
Remember, don’t put off your yearly exams - make the call and schedule the appointments. And, trust your own instincts. No one knows your body as well as you do. If something doesn’t seem right - check it out and be persistent!
Lesson Two - Trust your own instincts. You know your body better than anyone else. If you think something is wrong, check it out with more than one source, and continue checking until you are sure of the results. When in doubt, check it out, again and again if necessary, with
