The reason for the title of this post is Diane's emphatic plea: do not put off getting your yearly mammogram. And when you get it, make sure to get it in 3D. She really wants to get that across to everyone - get it done!
You see, she was at her family doctor for her yearly physical, and as he went over everything, he mentioned that he would put in a referral for a mammogram. Nothing was bothering her - he was just getting all of the annual stuff set up. She wasn't actually going to make the appointment for the mammogram until fall because she was busy with end of school year stuff (she works in the counselor's office at a high school), and then she always goes away to visit her family for over a month in the summer...it wasn't a priority. But the mammography department always calls to schedule mammograms when they get referrals, and since they called, she figured what the heck, get it over with now.
Just a few months ago, the mammography department got a new 3D machine, and the tech doing Diane's mammo said it picks up everything. But she wasn't worried as there is zero family history of breast cancer. She had it done, left, and figured she'd get a letter in the mail a few days later, saying all was clear and to come back in a year. Instead, she got a phone call wanting her to return for another mammogram and possibly an ultrasound. She was concerned, of course, but breast cancer didn't run in her family so it must have been the super sensitive 3D machine, nothing to be really worried about.
On a Friday, she went in for the mammogram. And then they did an ultrasound. And then they did a biopsy. Well. That was a little more concerning. OK a lot more. When they were finished she came over to my house and we sat in stunned silence for a while. When they do all of that it's not looking good, and words were hard to come by for a bit. Emotions were all over the place - tears, anger, laughter - as she kept saying this wasn't supposed to happen. She was just days away from the birth of her first grandchild - she was waiting to be a grandma, not have breast cancer!
By the end of the afternoon we'd made a plan for her to become my couch buddy if need be. Hey, I have two full-sized couches, it could work! Except that I didn't want her to become my couch buddy for THAT reason.
On Tuesday, she got a call to come in to her doctor's office, where she was given the news that she had breast cancer. Also on that Tuesday? Her grandson was born! Talk about some pretty strong lows and highs, all on the same day. She was so excited to become a grandma. She didn't have time for this! Luckily, the cancer was caught very early thanks to the super sensitive 3D mammogram. And because she didn't put off the mammogram for six months like she'd planned, the cancer was small. It was a horribly scary diagnosis to get, of course, but her doctor was very positive about treatment with a full recovery.
She had a lumpectomy a week later and that went well - the edges were clear and the pathology showed the lymph nodes were as well. The surgeon was very optimistic that he'd gotten everything, and all that remained for Diane to do was to recover from the surgery, have some radiation, and then she'd be done.
After the surgery Diane said "I don't have cancer - they took it all" - and she's right. She's already more than a quarter way through her radiation treatments. She's set to finish on July 1 and has a plane ticket purchased for July 2 to fly to visit her family for the rest of the summer. She does not mess around. This is the Diane that I know - she has more energy than anybody, and she's got places to go, people to see, and things to do! After all, this is the woman who ran a marathon in May, in Texas. She's got this.
Here's Diane holding her one-day-old grandson:
Grandma Diane and Oliver James!
And here she is holding one-month-old Oliver:
Oliver is so cute all snuggled in his grandma's arms!
Once again, get your mammogram. Get it in 3D if possible. Don't put it off.
from My Journey to Fit http://bit.ly/2XTRlBZ
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