Vim & Vigor - Fall 2013 - Gwinnett Medical Center - (Page 20)
S
he was performing a routine clinical breast
exam at my annual well-woman appointment
and, to answer her question, no, I’d never felt
any lump before. “But what would it matter
if I had?” I thought. That lump now existed. I
obviously had breast cancer. I was panicking.
“I’ll schedule you for an ultrasound first thing
tomorrow morning,” she said briskly. I asked her,
point blank, whether it was cancer, even though I
knew she wasn’t able to assess that through touch
alone. I just wanted to hear her say, “No, don’t worry.
It can’t possibly be.” But she replied, “This lump is
the size and shape consistent with cancer.”
Needless to say, I endured a sleepless night. The
next day, my ultrasound revealed I could breathe
easy—it was a harmless cyst, not cancer. I practically
danced out of the doctor’s office.
Still, the experience rattled me. How could I have
missed a lump that was the size and firmness of a
jelly bean when I was (most always) diligent about
performing monthly breast self-exams? What if I’d
blown off my annual exam and the lump had been
cancer? Would it have been found in time?
Early Detection Saves Lives
An annual exam, or well-woman exam, as it’s typically called, is a chance to review your overall health,
including your weight, body mass index, blood pressure and any changes in lymph nodes. There also are
a clinical breast exam, a pelvic exam and possibly
a Pap test. And it’s a good time to talk to your doctor about changes in your health that you may have
noticed in the past year.
20
FA L L 2 013
This is also a time to talk to your provider about
your cancer risk factors. Do you need help to quit
smoking? Are you in the correct weight range? Do
you have a family history of cancer?
“It’s good to alleviate any concerns you have,” says
Debbie Saslow, PhD, director of breast and gynecologic cancers for the American Cancer Society (ACS).
And if you’re unsure of how to perform a breast selfexam, this is the time to ask for a tutorial.
The importance of an annual exam is confirmed
when you consider the continuous decrease in breast
cancer deaths over the past 15 to 20 years. “About half
the explanation is that the treatment is better … and
about half of it is us catching it early,” Saslow says.
Every Year or
Every Three Years?
It should be noted that the annual part of an annual
exam is up for some debate. For younger women without a family history of breast cancer, the ACS recommends clinical breast exams every three years, then
every year starting in your 40s. Similarly, if you’ve
had normal results on recent Pap tests, the society
says you can go three years until your next one. The
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,
Office on Women’s Health, recommends these tests
at least every two years for women younger than 30
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vim & Vigor - Fall 2013 - Gwinnett Medical Center
Vim & Vigor - Fall 2013 - Gwinnett Medical Center
Contents
Phil’s Feature
Kind and Generous
How Can We Help?
Step It Up
Your Mightiest Muscle
Well, Well, Well
Are You Doing More Harm Than Good?
Is Your Shut-Eye Serving You Well?
Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge
Anatomy of an ER Visit
Next-Gen Surgery
Attack from Within
Virtual Health
PrimeTime Health
Clear Passage
New Life with New Knees
Out of the White Coat
Transforming Healthcare
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