A Unique Perspective

Cathie,

It is so interesting to hear a cancer diagnosis from your perspective being in the medical field. It is so good to hear that you are doing so well. May you have many years as a survivor ahead of you.

Amy

I am a 9 year breast cancer survivor. I was diagnosed at the age of 42, from a routine mammogram. For some reason, I had skipped a year and missed having my mammogram at age 41. I now wonder what that missed mammogram would have shown. I had a non-palpable mass, located way back near the chest wall. Subsequent biopsy showed that it was an early Stage II. I underwent a lumpectomy and had to have all my left axillary lymph nodes removed, as my sentinel node showed 4 positive nodes.

I work as a Radiologic technologist, seeing and helping treat patients with breast, and other cancers, every day. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think that I would be one of those patients, having a port-a-cath inserted for chemo, having a bone scan and muga scan done in Nuclear Medicine to see if my cancer had spread anywhere else. I teach Radiologic technology students and imagine their surprise, when doing their clinical rotations through Radiation Oncology, I insisted that they observe and participate in my care and treatments. Class time became a time for them to learn more about what a cancer patient goes through, from the fatigue to the very itchy “cranial prosthesis” (wig) that I would end up taking off by the end of the day!

I continued to work throughout my treatments, knowing that keeping busy was one of the best medicines I could have. Having a husband and 2 children at home who needed me also was a determining factor to keep on keepin’ on. I would talk with my patients while I was going through my own treatments, sometimes comparing stories with them, encouraging them and sometimes giving them a shoulder to cry on. My current job duties as a breast patient navigator have allowed me to take what could have been an extremely devastating time in my life and turn the experience into a positive.

Would I wish what I went through on anyone else? No! But it was not as bad as it could have been. I worked with a radiologist who was a breast cancer survivor who ended up needing a bone marrow transplant. Another co-worker was not as fortunate with her cancer diagnosis, and after a re-occurrence, suffered from bone metastases and lost her battle. I look at these strong individuals and others and say thank you, I am here and I am doing fine.



Cathie

Certified BreastPatient Navigator/

Clinical Instructor/Quality/Education

Department of Radiology