McCrabb: Even health professional not immune to breast cancer


MOBILE MAMMOGRAPHY

Premier Health’s mobile mammography coach will be available at the following dates and times for appointments:

Schedule a mobile mammogram by calling 844-453-4199.

• Monday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Sharonville Fire Station No. 87, 11210 Reading Road, Sharonville

• Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Sharonville Fire Station No. 86, 11637 Chester Road

• Thursday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Waynesville Pharmacy, 415 S. Main St., Waynesville

• Oct. 15, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Cincinnati Premium Outlets, 400 Premium Outlets Drive, Monroe

• Oct. 20, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Miami Valley Hospital Medical Imaging- Springboro, 630 N. Main St., Springboro

• Oct. 21, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Central Connections, 3907 Central Ave., Middletown

• Oct. 22, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Dorothy Lane Market, 6177 Far Hills Ave., Washington Twp.

• Oct. 28, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Trenton Family Medicine, 3590 Busenbark Road, Trenton

• Oct. 29, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Monroe Medical Center, 20 Overbrook Dr., Monroe

SOURCE: Atrium Medical Center

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ONLY ONLINE

​Our online Breast Cancer Resource Guide includes local resources. Find it online at http://tinyurl.com/JNcancer

COMING OCT. 22

Our annual “Pink Paper” on Oct. 22 will include special breast cancer coverage

Mikki Clancy just celebrated another birthday and she couldn’t be prouder.

Her friends told her she was 39 — wink, wink — but Clancy insisted she was 51.

“Forty-nine just about killed me,” she said. “It was good to be 50 and even better to be 51. Every birthday is good.”

Two years ago, Clancy, COO at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton, was diagnosed with triple negative, stage 2-3 breast cancer that was detected in her annual mammogram. Clancy is thankful Premier Health offers its patients 3-D mammograms because her breast cancer was detected near her chest wall, and she’s convinced the disease wouldn’t have been seen in a traditional test.

“Saved my life,” she said of the new technology.

Immediately after the diagnosis, Clancy gathered her husband, Dave, and daughter, Jenn, 24, a medical student at St. Louis University, together and they prayed and formed a strategy. Even with her medical background, Clancy, a Springboro resident, called dealing with cancer “very overwhelming” because decisions must be made quickly.

“Going fast mattered,” she said.

It also was important, she said, to be part of the decision-making process. The medical staff gave her the options, and then she and her family picked the path.

“I wanted to be a partner in my own care,” she said.

She chose not to receive radiation. Instead, she had chemotherapy, a double mastectomy and a total of five surgeries. Now, she said, she’s cancer-free.

When asked what she thinks about now — now that’s she wears the badge of being a breast cancer survivor — she mentioned two totally different words: Torture and hope.

“It’s a tough journey,” she said. “You put things in your body to kill cells.”

Then she mentioned hope.

“This brought out the best in people,” Clancy said. “People were so kind and generous with their time and prayer.”

Looking back on the past two years, she can’t help but think what would have happened — how her life may have been different — if she hadn’t gotten her annual mammogram. She has no breast cancer in her family history.

Early detection is “incredibly important,” she said.

Area residents now have another option for their mammograms since Premier Health opened its mobile mammography coach last year. The unit travels to businesses, public venues and events throughout Southwest Ohio making it easier for busy women to get their annual mammogram screening, said Anna Meiners, manager of medical imaging and breast services at Atrium Medical Center.

Equipped with advanced imaging equipment, the coach offers traditional 2-D and Genius 3-D Mammography technology to detect breast cancer, she said. About 1,500 women were tested in the first year, and nine were found to have breast cancer, she said.

She called that number “pretty significant” because about 100 breast cancers are detected annually at Atrium.

The biggest benefit of the coach, she said, is taking the services to the patients. Women, she said, typically put the well-being of others ahead of themselves.

“It’s about making it convenient,” she said. “Some women have said, ‘I just saw the mobile and it was convenient.’”

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