Being told she had breast cancer at 40, certainly came as a shock to Hélène Ravlich. Particularly because she had no family history, and she had absolutely no inkling she may have it – there was no lump, no suspicious symptoms. She wasn’t even due to get a mammogram for another five years – but, as luck would have it, she decided to get one early. Now, it’s likely that decision could have saved her life.
Welcome to our column, A Letter To… Some of our most well-known Kiwis and everyday heroes pen letters about a topic close to their hearts. Some of their names you will know very well, while other’s are kept anonymous to protect the privacy of the subjects. Whether it is a letter to a specific someone, or a group of people, or simply an open letter to broach a difficult subject, each letter is very different, but all will share one common thread; they will all be written from the heart.You can read our other letters here.
This month Hélène shares her story and her beautiful letter that she hopes might help someone else out there in saving their own life, or the life of a woman dear to them…
I’m 53 now, but when I turned 40 my (very proactive) doctor advised me to embark on a bit of a personal warrant of fitness, which included a mammogram. With the privilege of private health insurance and a decent income, it seemed like a no brainer, and despite being five years below the free screening age there didn’t seem any reason not to tick that box off.
It wasn’t my first mammogram so I knew what to expect. I had been diagnosed with what has been called “cystic” breasts a few years before and the initial discomfort that comes with that had led me to have a mammogram a few years before. It went by without a hitch so I went into the radiologist’s office that sunny autumn morning assuming this would be the same. My worries at the time included picking my son up from kindy on time, grabbing a bottle of wine on the way home and booking a haircut – i.e. breast cancer was not top of the list when it came to things to dwell on. So when I received a call the following Friday from my specialist after another biopsy, the last thing I expected to hear was, “We need to see you to discuss your results.”
Despite having zero history of breast cancer in my family, no concerning lump or suspicious symptoms, I had been diagnosed with breast cancer. Within 10 days I was in surgery and then spent an agonising four weeks waiting for a plan to follow – chemotherapy had been ruled unnecessary, but daily radiation therapy was on the cards and five weeks’ worth of it at that. When a later MRI confirmed the cancer had not spread to my other breast, I was so prepared for bad news that I almost didn’t know whether to believe it.
Fast forward another five years and my life was looking pretty much back to normal. Work was a little stressful but I enjoyed the feeling of being ‘busy and blessed’, and having moved house from one that I had come to associate with my cancer recovery and all that came with it I was ready for anything. Well not actually anything, given that my annual mammogram (I was now of free screening age but continued to see my original specialist) revealed that the cancer was back. In the same spot and declared a case of “treatment failure”, and once again my world came crashing down.
What followed was a gruelling mastectomy and brutal reconstruction using a muscle taken from my back, which necessitated multiple surgeries and resulted in frozen shoulder and all kinds of chronic pain issues and anxiety around illness that I still live with today. I also now live with radiation fibrosis as a result of the radiotherapy 13 years ago that didn’t quite nail the assignment, and with my annual mammogram coming up this June I am – as always – quite frankly shitting myself. Despite this I have it booked in and am ready to once again that tick that particular task off my to-do list because not once, but twice that very appointment quite possibly saved my life.
Many women say to me, “But mammograms are terrifying.” Yes, they can be, but even more frightening to me is the possibility of a whānau growing old without their mama, partner, sister or daughter. Listen to your bodies and your doctors, and when it’s time for you to do your own warrant of fitness then get to it.
And don’t wait until you feel a lump. A mammogram can pick up very small breast cancers, well before a lump can be felt. In fact, Breast Cancer Cure says that out of every 100 women aged 45 – 69 who are diagnosed with the disease, just 60 had their cancer found through routine screening and the later the cancer is found the harder it is to treat.
Breast Cancer Cure also says that when breast cancer is found by screening, more than 9 in 10 women survive at least 10 years. But if it’s found after symptoms appear, that drops to 7 or 8 in 10.
Because the risk of breast cancer increases as you get older, it’s recommended that women consider having regular screening from age 40, but unfortunately our government only funds these from age 45. This is just one of many factors that needs addressing, but that rant is for another day.
As a survivor I’m doing everything I can to encourage people who have been putting off their mammogram to book an appointment, and part of that has been throwing my support behind Breast Cancer Cure’s Tees for a Cure Campaign which is also raising money for vital research which will bring us one step closer to finding a cure.
So if you’ve been avoiding it? Don’t. Book your free mammogram with BreastScreen Aotearoa and help Breast Cancer Cure by purchasing one of their 17 winter tees and jerseys created by 17 well-known Kiwi fashion designers.