Mammography – The Screening That Can Save Your Life
Mammography – The Screening That Can Save Your Life
Submitted by: Gateway Health Plan®
The words breast cancer are scary to hear. However, with education, preventive care, good nutrition and regular exercise, you can reduce your risk. One way to reduce your risk of breast cancer is with regular mammography. A mammography is an X-ray of the breast. Its helps find breast cancer early before a woman may even have symptoms.
Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer in African American women. Screening for it is very important because it can detect cancer early. Mammograms can show changes in the breast up to two years before a patient or physician can feel the changes. If caught early, breast cancer is most treatable.
When you go in for a mammogram, you will undress above the waist, wear a hospital gown and stand in front of an X-ray machine. A mammogram technician helps position your breasts on the X-ray plates. Then pictures are taken of your breasts.
African American Women should have a mammogram every one to two years starting at age 40. Remember, when breast cancer is found early it has the best chances for being cured.
Are you putting off your mammogram? What’s Your Excuse?
My grandmother and mother never had breast cancer, so I don’t have to worry.
Unfortunately, if you are a woman and getting older, you are at risk for breast cancer. In fact, 70-80 percent of women who have breast cancer do not have family history of the disease. A woman with a family history of breast cancer should talk to her doctor about getting checked more often. At age 40, all women should get regular mammograms.
My monthly self breast exam and check-ups with my doctor is good enough for me!
Mammograms can spot lesions one-fifth the size of those that can be felt by hand. For example, a doctor may be able to feel a lump the size of a small pea. Mammograms can find lumps the size of a grain of rice! Mammograms can pick up about 40 percent of cancers that are too small to detect by touch during exams.
If my doctor did not recommend a mammogram, I do not need one.
Studies show that the most frequent reason why women do not get mammogram is because they did not talk about it with their doctor. Talk to your doctor today about when you should get screened.
Finding breast cancer early is important because treatment is based on type, size and location of the tumor. There are many options in the treatment of breast cancer so it is important to discuss all of the options with your physician. Your doctor will likely refer you to an oncologist, a medical doctor who specializes in the treatment of cancer. Based on your type of breast cancer, your oncologist may recommend one of the following treatment plans:
- Surgery: There are many options with surgery. You may have what’s called a lumpectomy, where only breast tissue surrounding the tumor is removed. The second choice is a complete mastectomy, which is removal of the entire breast. For those in the high-risk group, both breasts may need to be removed. Some women remove both breasts by choice to reduce the chance of cancer returning. It’s best to discuss which option is best for you with your doctor.
- Chemotherapy: Chemotherapy is powerful drug used to treat cancer and you will need to schedule appointments at an outpatient clinic to receive it. They will most likely give you the drug through a needle in your arm while you sit in a reclining chair. Depending on type of tumor, chemotherapy can last anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. The medicine they give you can make you sick and your hair fall out, but newer drugs are working to help minimize these symptoms. An oncology nurse can help you through the rough patches and it helps to bring a family member or trusted friend to help pass the time while you sit and receive treatment.
- Radiation therapy: This is where radioactive material is targeted to your tumor site to help get rid of any remaining cancer cells that surgery or chemotherapy did not catch. Think of it as added insurance to protect you. This too can make you sick so be sure to report any symptoms to your doctor. Another type of radiation uses radioactive “seeds” that are put into the breast at the site of where the tumor was removed. This type of radiation therapy is gaining in popularity because it spares the healthy tissue surrounding the tumor while destroying the unhealthy tissue.
- Hormonal therapy/stem cell transplants: These therapies can be used alone or in combination with chemotherapy and radiation therapy to help boost your healthy cells to help the medicine work to kill the cancer cells. Some medical centers may enroll cancer patients in what’s known as a clinical trial, where you are placed in a medical research study to test the effectiveness of your cancer treatment with other types of treatment. Not everyone is a candidate for medical research studies, so it is best to discuss with your doctor about whether or not this option is right for you.
Remember: Take charge of your health by asking questions. Be sure to write things down when you meet with the doctor so you remember everything that was said. Do regular self-breast exams and report anything unusual to your doctor right away. You know your body better than anyone else. If you are a Gateway member, or would like to find out more about the health plan, visit www.GatewayHealthPlan.com for more information.
Filed under: Gateway Health Plan