Karen Morris
English 1102-XX
4 March 2011
More Time Please
A lady named Michele Hyra tells her deeply moving story of how she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She noticed a very large lump on her breast, but she did not want to think that there was something wrong (Breast MRI). Until one tipsy night with her friends, she asked all three of her friends to see if this lump was of anything to worry about; there was (Breast MRI). Unfortunately, the lump was so huge; it was of great worries to Hyra because she is only thirty five years old (Breast MRI). Once being scheduled for her mammogram to detect the lump on her breast, the doctor wanted her to stay for the next hour for confirmation (Breast MRI). The lump in her breast was that much of a risk for her life, so they had to keep her (Breast MRI). This made Hyra very nervous because she had an idea of what was going on, but she did not want to think about it (Breast MRI). A breast MRI was followed after her mammogram, and everything was checked (Breast MRI). Cancer was not only diagnosed in her breast, but the cancer was found in her bones as well which means that Hyra only has a matter of months to live (Breast MRI).
Hyra lives in a healthcare family (Breast MRI). Her father was a physician, and her mother was a nurse (Breast MRI). However, she still had to wait two weeks until she could get an appointment to screen her four very large lumps in her body (Breast MRI). So, Hyra could not have a mammogram done on her breast; she prayed that one of the patients would give up their appointment for her, but they did not (Breast MRI). Time played a very important role to Hyra’s life because she was told that she only had eleven months to live (Breast MRI). This cancer was so serious that it was pronounced to be on Stage 4 metastatic breast cancer, which meant that the cancer has spreaded out to her organs and to the skeleton (Breast MRI). In healthcare terms, she would have no chance of living because the cancer was that bad (Breast MRI). What she would be leaving behind her are her two daughters and a loving husband (Breast MRI). This was the worst part of having cancer because Hyra would have to leave her family behind (Breast MRI).
The healthcare administration for Hyra’s town was supposed to be sued for malpractice because Hyra had mammograms yearly but Stage 4 of breast cancer was diagnosed quickly (Breast MRI). How could a doctor not detect the cancer? The doctor had to have informational sheets that stated if there was something detected on the breast. The problem was that the mammogram did not read the cancer on her breast (New Information about using MRI). Only an MRI can detect the cancer with assurance because Dr. Constance Lehman of Seattle Cancer Care Alliance stated that having an MRI scan on the breast will effectively double numbers found in women of cancer (New Information about using MRI). The MRI scans women’s breast to make sure clinical examinations or mammography did not miss any readings when screened (New Information about using MRI). When the MRI detects the cancer precisely, the doctor can make sure that the cancer is treated right away.
Stage 4 is a very serious cancer that can take more than eighteen months. This cancer stage could have been prevented but it was not. The only reason why Hyra does not want to sue is because she does not have the time length in her life to do so. She only has eleven months with her family; so therefore, she chose to pursue her life instead of malpractice. Healthcare took her life because it could have been prevented; it was not.
Why did Hyra have this interview? She wanted to state that having cancer and running out of time is a very serious thing. Hyra would literally pay to have more time with her family to spend time with them rather than die. Hyra’s interview mainly speaks out to women of America about getting a breast MRI every year.
Another misdiagnosis of breast cancer is Stephanie LaRue. She was thirty years old when diagnosed with Stage IV of metastatic breast cancer (The Stephanie LaRue Story). The doctors told her that she was too young, and not to worry about it because the mammogram did not detect anything (The Stephanie LaRue Story). Her description of breast cancer did not fit a basic profile chart evaluation, so therefore, LaRue’s cancer spreaded to Stage IV (The Stephanie LaRue Story). There are many things wrong with this story because a doctor cannot turn away a patient because the screenings could not be read (The Stephanie LaRue Story). Also, a mammogram cannot detect every little thing that is in one breast. This clearly reads out misdiagnosis to many doctors.
LaRue was given one year to live because the cancer had spreaded too quickly all over her body (The Stephanie LaRue Story). Her age states that she is too young for cancer, but cancer can develop anywhere and to anybody at no certain age or form. It all depends if a professional doctor or the right technological equipment can detect cancer right away. The mammogram did not show results for LaRue, but a breast MRI could have. She did not have one done, and doctors kept on telling her that they do not see anything (The Stephanie LaRue Story). She went to several doctors to get several statements, but they all told her that it just looked like a breast infection (The Stephanie LaRue Story).
After many chemotherapy treatments and multiple surgeries, LaRue’s doctors have correctly diagnosed that she is cancer free (The Stephanie LaRue Story). She has no traces of the cancer ever starting, and is happily living today (The Stephanie LaRue Story). As of now, she is an advocate for breast cancer education for women, and shares her depressing story as a wakeup call for all women (The Stephanie LaRue Story).
Both of the stories listed shares one advocating truth which is breast MRI saves lives. How does it save a life? A breast MRI can detect any future cancer because it catches what a mammogram left off or what an ultrasound has missed. The MRI takes pictures of the breast and uses radiation waves to show what is in the breast. When the MRI is taken, there will not be any misreading because it is all digitally taken for the doctors to look on the screen. The more MRI’s are taken, the less tragic stories there are of how misdiagnosis occurred.
Hyra and LaRue both suffered from Stage IV of breast cancer, and faced chemotherapy because of the doctor misdiagnosis and mammogram. Their stories have affected many women in America because it stresses out how much precaution should be taken when going to the doctors to have a breast examination. Always have an MRI yearly because it can detect things in the breast rather than a self examination or a mammogram.
If an MRI is practiced every year, then there would be a decrease of statistics in women diagnosed with breast cancer (New Information about using MRI). On average, one eighth of women will have breast cancer and might possible die (New Information about using MRI). Sometimes cancer cannot be prevented, but death from cancer can. The MRI will only take thirty-five to forty-five minutes, and then that is it for the examination (New Information about using MRI). Women cannot state that they are too busy for examinations because their health is more important.
Work Cited
Breast MRI: Detecting Breast Cancer in More Women. 9 Nov. 2010. YouTube.com. Web. 3 March, 2011.
Breast MRI - Screening for ALL Women. 20 Oct. 2008. YouTube.com. Web. 4 March, 2011.
Living with Metastatic Breast Cancer at 40. 3 Oct. 2008. YouTube.com. Web. 23 Feb. 2011.
"New Information About Using MRI Scans To Screen For Breast Cancer | Seattle Cancer Care Alliance." Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, UW Medicine. Web. 18 Feb. 2011.
The Stefanie LaRue Story. 16 April, 2007. YouTube.com. Web. 4 March, 2011.
