Twice in my life, I have had concerning results to a mammogram. Fortunately, both were benign but it caused me to think about what it must be like to have breast cancer.
My first concerning mammogram was a few years before the pandemic. They found something in my left breast and recommended an ultrasound aided biopsy. On the day of the procedure, the doctor explained that it would be a biopsy or a cyst aspiration depending on what they found. He ended up sucking a clear fluid from the cyst and leaving a metal marker. I was so relieved that it wasn’t cancer that I took a walk around town looking into shop windows and listening to my brain repeatedly say, “I don’t have cancer.” I wanted to tell everybody. I think I might have told a stranger at Walmart too.
During the pandemic, I developed a breast infection and had a core needle biopsy but I never believed that cancer was possible. My general practitioner wanted to “rule out cancer” before prescribing an antibiotic. So, I never worried about having cancer for that one.
The second mammogram of concern was this January.
This time the biopsy was guided by mammogram images. It was called a stereotactic biopsy.
When I arrived, I was taken to a consultation room and met the doctor who read my mammogram and was going to do the biopsy. She was a young woman. I had read the mammogram report which used a BI-RAD scoring scale of 4b. 4b means that there is a 10 to 50% chance of cancer. When I asked the doctor about my odds, she said 50%. I replied that I don’t like those odds. I signed the consent form and she called the exam room in order to see if they were ready for me. I saw a bed up in the air like a bunk bed with medical equipment under it where the lower bed would be. I climbed up and laid on my stomach with my right breast sticking through a hole in the bed. It felt strange because I usually go to sleep on my stomach in a similar position. My rib cage below my right breast felt uncomfortable. Here is a website describing the procedure. I worried about the cost even though I knew that I needed to know what was causing the micro calcifications. I predicted that it would be in thousands of dollars. Since the biopsy was on Friday, I had to wait over the weekend for the results. For me, that was a long weekend but Monday felt longer. I worked while distracted which caused a few air headed moments. I kept checking my online chart during every break and saw nothing. When I finally got home, the results showed up in my chart. I printed it out and read it over and over. I thought it was benign but it didn’t say anywhere. It just said what the sample was. Then, the call came and they said it was benign. I grinned all day at work the next day and wondered how much it would cost me and my insurance.
In February, I got the bill. The total was 12,000 dollars. My insurance paid 9,000 dollars and I paid almost 3,000 dollars.
This experience got me thinking about what it might be like to have breast cancer. During the weekend awaiting the results, I Googled a lot of stuff on breast cancer which caused Facebook to start sharing stuff about breast cancer. I started thinking that I had it as a way to mentally prepare. I was planning to talk to my pastor and update friends and family with the news. Yet, I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to need surgery followed by radiation treatments like my friend’s doctor had recommended to her when she had breast cancer. She went with surgery without radiation. How much would all of that cost? Who would guide the patient and her family through all of the medical terminology?
Facebook shared a photo a day challenge from the American Cancer Society. Since I love photography and got a crash course on breast biopsies, I joined the challenge. Here is my fundraiser page. I will post my daily picture on this blog and update my Facebook periodically during the challenge. Please share your experiences with cancer and/or the American Cancer Society.
I checked the charity navigator website and saw that the American Cancer Society got the highest rating possible.
