Kirtyhoo

Last Thursday, I received THE CALL. Fell out of my chair and started planning my bucket list.

Caller: Ms. Stanaway, the radiologist has detected a 0.6 cm obscured density on your mammogram.

Me: (what the hell did she just say? Oh, God. I’m dying.) Silence

Caller: Ms. Stanaway, we need you to come in for a diagnostic mammogram and ultrasound. Are you free tomorrow or Monday?

Me: (Oh, God, this is serious – they need me to come in right away.) I’m free Monday.

Caller: Ok, we’ll see you at 2:15…. And then, all I hear was blah, blah, blah, obscured density that differs from your previous mammogram, blah, blah, don’t wear deodorant, blah, blah. Do you have any questions?

Me: Ummm, what? (I can’t even comprehend what you just told me – and can’t even talk with this lump in my throat. So even if I had a question, I can’t get the words to come out of my mouth.)

So, I spent the weekend calming my nerves with cold beer and hard labor in my garden. Monday’s appointment came and went – boobs painfully squished into flat, little pancakes. And the radiologist found nothing. Hallelujah!

Apparently, I’m part of a growing trend in the mammogram biz. This article appeared in the New York Times yesterday. Rather timely! 

Ladies – schedule your annual appointments TODAY. It sucks, but there’s power in knowing that you’re OK.