Just Sayin’: A mammogram saved my life
Helen Darling of the San Antonio Silver Stars receives a screening mammogram at Christus Santa Rosa Hospital-Westover Hills at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas, on Aug. 18, 2009. Credit: Getty Images
New guidelines from the American Cancer Society say women older than 55 should have a mammography every two years.
This year, at age 72, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I have gone for a mammogram every year and was shocked by the diagnosis.
I have no family history of breast cancer and have never had a problem in the past. I took radical action and had a double mastectomy. Because the cancer was caught early and hadn’t spread, I didn’t need further treatment.
If I had taken the advice of the American Cancer Society and waited another year to be examined, I probably wouldn’t have been so lucky.
Jo-Ann Monaco
Bethpage
