my lovely lady lumps

my grandmother died of breast cancer when i was young, and almost since i understood what a mammogram was, i've been trying to get a medical professional to deem one  necessary (or at the least, pertinent).  but up until recently, the standard was that insurance would start covering mammograms at age 35.  so, when i had to visit a doctor a couple of months ago (something i very rarely do) for a physical ordered by my company, i asked her about a mammogram.  apparently the age has been upped to 40, but with family history, she went ahead and signed off on it.

it was about a month ago that i went in to the local 'breast center', not having any idea what to expect.  i've heard that for some women (including my mother) it's incredibly painful, but i mostly just found it a little uncomfortable and awkward (the awkwardness coming from the fact that you are not supposed to wear deodorant).  all went swimmingly until about a week and a half later, i received a call asking me to come back in for a re-check of the left breast.  numbly, without asking any questions, i scheduled the appointment. which was quickly followed by a mild nervous breakdown and a return call.  i was told that re-checks were common and that in my case, there was simply a dark area that they wanted to look at more closely.

fortunately, i was on the road for almost three weeks, so i didn't have a lot of free time for fretting.  and, when i arrived at the breast center today, i was feeling optimistic. it took longer than the first appointment, and i found myself trying to read every expression as the nurse first took a set of x-rays, than moved me into another room for a set of ultrasounds (never thought my first ultrasound would be on my breast!).

after she finished, she left the room and returned quickly with the doctor.  and while i never thought i'd hear a man tell me he didn't like my breasts (this is an all adult audience, right?), in this case it was a good thing. he said that he simply wanted to be overly careful since the tissue in my breast is extremely fibrous and has lots of 'twists and turns', but after doing his own set of ultrasounds, concluded there was nothing to be concerned about.

in the end, it was worth a little discomfort, awkwardness, and nervousness to have gained some peace of mind.