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Sunday, 29 November -0001 19:03

Mammograms: They're More Important Than You Think

Breast Cancer Awareness Month is an important month honoring those who have been affected by breast cancer, an illness that is the second-leading cause of cancer death in women, with projections that the disease will claim over 39,000 lives in 2012, according to the National Cancer Institute (NCI).

The statistics are daunting, but the disease can be detected early enough to stop it from spreading into dangerous stages. The problem is, many women are afraid of the method that must be used to detect cancer that early: mammograms.

Mammograms screenings can be used to check for breast cancer in women who have no signs or symptoms of the disease. Screening mammograms usually involve two x-ray pictures, one of each breast, which make it possible to detect tumors that cannot be felt. Screening mammograms can also find microcalcifications (tiny deposits of calcium) that sometimes indicate the presence of breast cancer.

“Quite honestly, it is a scary thing. You’re asking doctors to tell you if you’re healthy or not, regardless of how you feel,” said Mildred Aviles, director of medical imaging at the Women’s Imaging Center at Wilton Medical Arts, a branch of Saratoga Hospital. “But if we find something very small, the treatment for that is going to be very different than when it’s something large that can be felt. [Most of us] know someone who’s had breast cancer, and most of the time deaths are due to late stage diagnoses.”

The Women’s Imaging Center (WIC) allows women to get their annual mammograms in the most comfortable setting possible. The lobby features spa-like qualities, encompassing a soothing waterfall, calming music and usually jugs of lemon water, though currently they have been replaced by raffle baskets that clients have a chance to win this month.

Women who are scared or nervous about the process can also have their nerves calmed by Diane Young, the breast health nurse navigator at the WIC.

“Literally, this woman holds your hand through the process,” said Ellen Kerness, manager of marketing and communications at Saratoga Hospital, who knows from experience, after having gotten her own mammogram at the WIC. “She is a key component to making women feel comfortable—our entire staff was hired because of the way they deal with women.”

“We know it’s not easy for anyone,” Young added. “We want our patients to feel at peace. So that’s what makes our center unique, because normal imaging centers don’t have nurses in the room with women. There’s nobody to guide them through the process.”

Fear of the process is one reason many women don’t get their annual mammograms, but there are also many women who believe they can’t afford an annual mammogram screening. Many women are unaware of the New York State Cancer Services Program (CSP), a state grant program that has a center right here in Saratoga County.  The CSP offers free mammogram screenings to women ages 40-64 who have no health insurance.

“Breast cancer is one that can be found early on and be treated,” said Tasha Ostapczuk, outreach and recruitment coordinator at CSP of Saratoga County. “We screen women when they’re feeling healthy—it’s just like getting the oil changed on a car. If you don’t do it, the car can become ill, so to speak. It’s the same process for women—they should get it done because they can’t see inside, and by [our center] doing this, hopefully we find it early enough so that we can take care of it.”

Though the grant requires that women must be at least 40 years old to get the free screening, women under 40 who find a lump or other finding but can’t afford a screening are allowed a free one from the CSP.

“If there is a finding and it is followed by a diagnosis of breast cancer, we will enroll the individual in a Medicaid breast cancer treatment program, which covers the cost of treatment for the illness,” Ostapczuk said.

Ostapczuk emphasized that early detection is the best prevention for breast cancer, one of the mottos of the program.

One breast cancer survivor knows the importance of mammograms all too well. After being told by a doctor she didn’t need to get a screening until she was 40, Lisa Morahan was soon diagnosed with breast cancer after doctors found an 8-centimeter tumor, forcing her to have a bilateral mastectomy.

“I didn’t just have a lump—I had a softball,” Morahan said.

Morahan’s mother lived with breast cancer for 12 years, while Morahan was in her 20s and mid-30s, which is when she asked a doctor when to get a mammogram screening. After the doctor told her to wait, Morahan let it go.

“I didn’t know any different,” Morahan said. “I found myself going to lingerie stores and buying new bras because the old size wasn’t fitting as well. I didn’t put two-and-two together until I saw a doctor, and by that point I already had a very large tumor that you could detect without a mammogram.”

Aviles, from the WIC, said that usually doctors recommend waiting until age 40 to get screenings because they don’t want to expose younger women to the radiation.

“But the rule of thumb that we’ve used is that you should start your screening 10 years prior to the member of the family who had the cancer,” Aviles said. “So if you had a mother diagnosed with it in her 40s, the recommendation would be for you to start your screenings in your 30s—but that rule only applies for first-degree family members such as a mother, father, or sister.”

Aviles added that though it can be a nerve-wracking process, the WIC tries to make the process as easy and comfortable as possible so that women will get their mammograms once a year for the best early detection.

“It is a scary exam, but we have a wonderful nurse navigator who can navigate you through every step of what needs to happen,” Aviles said. “We try to make the surroundings calming and serene, and we have little cushions that go on the mammography plate that make it not so cold, and a little softer.”

The WIC will offer a breast health symposium Tuesday, October 23 at 6:30 p.m. The symposium will feature a panel-like presentation with doctors that deal with each different step of a breast cancer journey. Doctors will start at the beginning with a general surgeon, and will continue with an oncologist, radiation oncologist, radiologist, and physical therapist. The symposium will take place at the Saratoga Surgery Center on Route 50 in Saratoga Springs. Spots are filling up fast, so women who want to register can visit www.saratogahospital.org or call (581) 580-2450 for more information.

“Mammograms may not be very fun,” Aviles said. “But they do without a doubt save lives.”

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