Mammogram

~ I know this post will seem like it came out of nowhere but here it is...ladies, if you are 40 and over, please make sure to get your annual mammogram.  There are no excuses for not doing this no matter how busy you are or what's happening in your life.  I put off getting my mammogram last year because honestly, there was a lot going on at home and I didn't feel at the time, it was something I wanted to "get through" yet again.  But you know what, it's really not that bad at all.  It takes just a couple of minutes and then you're done.  

My doctor scheduled me for my annual this year because yes, foolishly, I wasn't going to get around to it this year either.  This year, as I mentioned to someone earlier, has been one of the worst years me and my family have ever gone through together.  It seemed like everything was breaking down in the house, car repairs, perimenopause health scares to include anemia, aging dog with physical issues requiring constant care (she eventually passed away), and now the mammogram results.

After the mammogram, I was told that I needed a biopsy because there were suspicious micro cluster calcifications in the left breast.  Forward a week later, I get the biopsy done.  Forward another three agonizing weeks of waiting for the results.  Yesterday, I finally got the results: I do not have cancer.  However, the cells that were examined were atypical and as a result, a partial mastectomy/lumpectomy was recommended.  This will allow the doctors to examine the entire mass instead of just what was based on the small piece from the biopsy.  If I declined this procedure, in the future, there is a risk that the cells could mutate or whatever abnormal thing they do and become cancerous.

Am I scared?  Yes!  This is considered an outpatient procedure but will be done with general anesthesia.  So, forward another three weeks and my surgery will happen.  In the meantime, I have to get some labs done, an EKG, and a chest x-ray before the surgery.

So, ladies, if you haven't scheduled your annual mammogram, please do it now.  Especially if you have a family history of breast cancer.  You think you have all the time in the world but you may not or you think that this could never happen to you, it could.  This is so very important.