[2023-03-24] Mammogram and breast MRI results
I had a breast MRI this morning—the second of two diagnostic tests I undergo annually to screen for breast cancer. The first, performed on Monday, was a mammogram.
As a carrier of an inherited mutation in my BRCA (breast cancer) gene, I am at a significant risk of developing breast cancer in my lifetime: 50-85% rather than the 12% risk among the general population. Because of this elevated risk, I get an annual mammogram and an annual breast MRI. Together, the two tests do a pretty reliable job of checking for signs of malignancy.
Within 24 hours of my mammogram, the results popped into MyChart. I held my breath while I opened the report, quickly scanning for the key words: "Normal mammogram. BI-RADS 1 (Negative)." The recommendation was for routine screening in 12 months.
I decided to wait until receiving the result of my breast MRI before sharing the news. Today, just six hours after the MRI, I received a notice of a new test result in MyChart. "Already?" I wondered. At that precise moment, I was enjoying a visit to the Central Experimental Farm in Ottawa with my husband and daughter. "If the results are bad," I thought, "it will ruin the family outing." But I also knew that if I didn't read the results right away, I would just keep thinking about them. So, once again, I held my breath and opened the report. For both breasts, it read: "No suspicious mass or non-mass enhancement." No lymphadenopathy (swelling of lymph nodes, which could be a sign of malignancy) and no extra-mammary findings. The bottom line was tremendously reassuring: "Bilateral breast MRI demonstrates no evidence of malignancy." As with the mammogram, the recommendation was for routine screening in 12 months.
I am grateful for these annual diagnostic tests, which provide reassurance as I wait in a slow-moving queue for a planned prophylactic bilateral mastectomy. That operation would remove the vast majority of breast tissue and thereby reduce my risk of developing breast cancer from the current 50-85% to 5-8%.
I'm also grateful for MyChart, which provides the results of tests directly to patients within days or hours of such procedures. This is a vast improvement over systems of the past whereby test results were sent to doctors, whose offices would call patients only if there were an issue. The waiting and uncertainty could be excruciating.
As I waited my turn to check in with the receptionist at the MRI unit this morning, both people in front of me were informed, in turn, that their appointments were for different times. The first person, an older woman, had arrived at 9:00 AM, only to be told that her appointment was for 9:00 PM. The second, a middle-aged man, had also arrived for 9:00 AM, but was told that his appointment had been for 4:00 AM and that he would have to reschedule. It was heartbreaking for them, but also for the receptionist who bore the brunt of their understandable frustration. When I got to the window, the receptionist was on the verge of tears. "I want to cry," she whispered. I tried to reassure her and even stretched out my hand to touch her shoulder, then wondered whether I should have done that. I was relieved when she confirmed that I did, indeed, have an appointment at 9:20. When I left, some 30 minutes later, I thanked the receptionist again and gave her an encouraging virtual hug. I will never know whether the mix-ups this morning were caused by system error or human error (on the part of the hospital or the patients), but I felt for everyone involved.
