Breast Cancer Awareness Month Has Started And Mammograms Are A Must
October is here which means all things fall and spooky! I love Halloween! In addition to all the fall festivities, October is also Breast Cancer Awareness Month. You never know how important this month is, until you have breast cancer.
In June of 2021, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. No one in my family has had it. There’s no history in either side of my family. I didn’t feel a lump, or anything abnormal. There’s wasn’t any pain. I missed my mammogram in 2020 due to COVID, and went in May of 2021. I wasn’t expecting a cancer diagnosis. Of course, no one is.
When you hear you have cancer, it’s a bit surreal. You are hearing what the doctor is saying, but your brain isn’t really processing it. After hearing I had cancer, the doctor began explaining options. I’m sitting there, hearing words, but not processing them. It’s a weird thing to go through. I remember calling my mom once I left the doctor’s and telling her I had cancer. Her reply was, ‘Nope.’ I kept telling her, yes, I have cancer, and she kept saying no, like I was asking her if she wanted coffee and dessert. LOL! It was a shock for me, and my family.
After going over the options the doctor gave me, I decided to have a partial lumpectomy on my left breast. My doctor is very proactive, and wanted to do the surgery asap in hopes the cancer wouldn’t spread. I ended up having surgery in June, and the tumor was taken out along with four lymph nodes. I was one of the lucky ones! My cancer was caught early, thanks to having a mammogram. If I’d have waited, I may not have been so lucky.
Make That Mammogram Appointment
Mammograms, quite honestly, are a pain in the ass appointment. It’s one of those things that many women put off. We always say, ‘I gotta make that appointment’ and then we forget. I was like that prior to having cancer! It’s not a long appointment, and it’s not painful, it’s just uncomfortable and annoying. Yet it can save your life.
In the last two years, since I had surgery, there are about seven women that I know that have gone through breast cancer. Unfortunately, it’s more common than many of us realize. According to the CDC, each year in the United States, about 240,000 cases of breast cancer are diagnosed in women. About 42,000 women die from it each year. Getting a mammogram yearly is the best way to detect cancer early, and can help save lives.
You can get a mammogram for free! If you have health insurance, it should be a free visit included with your plan. If you don’t have insurance or if it’s not included in your plan, freemammograms.org can help you find a health care location near you so that you can get a free mammogram.
This summer, I had my first mammogram that counted since going through cancer and radiation. My report came back all clear! It did say my left breast was ‘architecturally damaged’ due to the surgery. This cracked me up! They made my breast sound like a house that needs flipping. LOL! Humor and a strong support group can help you get through dealing with cancer. I’m also lucky as I had both.
Please, please, if you haven’t had a mammogram recently, make that appointment! If you’re scared to go, bring a friend. If a friend can’t go, let me know! I’ll go with you! Stay healthy!
Photo by Melany Myers
