Adventures in mammography
Just in case I haven't mentioned it before (& for the benefit of those what haven't been paying attention), my Mom had breast cancer. And, then, later, bone cancer (that was, technically, metastisized from the breast cancer, even though the breast cancer had been in remission for years before the bone cancer appeared). Eventually, Mom died of Leukemia, though that wasn't related to the previous cancers (at least, not in a way meaningful to modern science).
Oh, & also my brother is currently in remission from non-hodgekins lymphoma.
So, you'd think cancer would be a pretty big concern in my family. Well, it is... except that I'm a very good ostrich. Yeah, I'm all about early detection & aggressive treatment & all that, in theory, but I have to admit that I'm still pretty good at not going out of my way to detect anything early.
Not having health insurance was a viable (if not "good") excuse for that for awhile. Then I had insurance for several months before I made any appointments, just because it's so much easier to just sit at home & assume nothing's wrong because nothing hurts.
Well, Squeezums finally made me go see an OB/GYN. I decided to go to my almost-first one (my first one was in Daytona... I saw him once, when I was, I think, 19. I believe he was about 175 years old, then. In any case, I'm not driving to Daytona to see him again). Anywho, I went back to the OB/GYN I was seeing in the mid-90's. He amuses me.
He was actually very good about not being overly judgemental about not having seen me in close to a decade. There was only one time he seemed to be close to losing his patience: when I couldn't remember how old my mother was when she was diagnosed w/ breast cancer.
I seriously can't remember. I've got such a shit grasp of time... and trying to pair Mom being sick up w/ other things just doesn't quite work for me. Junior high, maybe? I'm almost certain that she was at least 20 years in remission (at least from the first bout of cancer) before she died, though, & seeing as she died when she was Not Quite Sixty, that would put her first diagnosis at 40.
Well, as it turns out (the reason Dr. was so impatient), you're supposed to get mammograms at least 10 years before the age your Primary Relative was when they were first diagnosed. So, assuming Mom was 40 when she was diagnosed, I should have gotten a mammogram 4 years ago.
Oops.
The mammogram itself was pretty uneventful. The only really awkward moment was when I was all contorted trying to press one boob between 2 plates while holding the other out of the way & trying to "stay very still" & not laughing while suddenly remembering a friend's description of a not-"same day" mammogram involving a flashlight & a sketch artist.
Since the mammogram, I've mostly forgotten about it. Every once in awhile, though, I think, "shouldn't I have heard something by now? Does it take longer if they're not sure what they're seeing? Should I be worried? Are they just struck dumb by how unspeakably awesome my boobs are, even in my 30's & viewing them as a digital radiograph (or whatever)?" ;P
Finally got my results letter today.
Negative. Routine follow up in one year if no complaints or problems.
I actually cried. I had no idea I was that worried about it until I was told not to worry.
Oh, & also my brother is currently in remission from non-hodgekins lymphoma.
So, you'd think cancer would be a pretty big concern in my family. Well, it is... except that I'm a very good ostrich. Yeah, I'm all about early detection & aggressive treatment & all that, in theory, but I have to admit that I'm still pretty good at not going out of my way to detect anything early.
Not having health insurance was a viable (if not "good") excuse for that for awhile. Then I had insurance for several months before I made any appointments, just because it's so much easier to just sit at home & assume nothing's wrong because nothing hurts.
Well, Squeezums finally made me go see an OB/GYN. I decided to go to my almost-first one (my first one was in Daytona... I saw him once, when I was, I think, 19. I believe he was about 175 years old, then. In any case, I'm not driving to Daytona to see him again). Anywho, I went back to the OB/GYN I was seeing in the mid-90's. He amuses me.
He was actually very good about not being overly judgemental about not having seen me in close to a decade. There was only one time he seemed to be close to losing his patience: when I couldn't remember how old my mother was when she was diagnosed w/ breast cancer.
I seriously can't remember. I've got such a shit grasp of time... and trying to pair Mom being sick up w/ other things just doesn't quite work for me. Junior high, maybe? I'm almost certain that she was at least 20 years in remission (at least from the first bout of cancer) before she died, though, & seeing as she died when she was Not Quite Sixty, that would put her first diagnosis at 40.
Well, as it turns out (the reason Dr. was so impatient), you're supposed to get mammograms at least 10 years before the age your Primary Relative was when they were first diagnosed. So, assuming Mom was 40 when she was diagnosed, I should have gotten a mammogram 4 years ago.
Oops.
The mammogram itself was pretty uneventful. The only really awkward moment was when I was all contorted trying to press one boob between 2 plates while holding the other out of the way & trying to "stay very still" & not laughing while suddenly remembering a friend's description of a not-"same day" mammogram involving a flashlight & a sketch artist.
Since the mammogram, I've mostly forgotten about it. Every once in awhile, though, I think, "shouldn't I have heard something by now? Does it take longer if they're not sure what they're seeing? Should I be worried? Are they just struck dumb by how unspeakably awesome my boobs are, even in my 30's & viewing them as a digital radiograph (or whatever)?" ;P
Finally got my results letter today.
Negative. Routine follow up in one year if no complaints or problems.
I actually cried. I had no idea I was that worried about it until I was told not to worry.