Breast Cancer Awareness Month might be ending, but it is not too late to get a mammogram.
We had the chance to sit down with Dr. Joyce Alexandar-Hines, our executive director for the North Carolina PACE center, LIFE St. Joseph of the Pines and asked about her experience with breast cancer. She shared why getting the mammogram on the calendar is so important and why she believes her story is meant to help other women.
“In July 2023, I had my annual mammogram, and they saw something in my left breast. They said they don’t think it’s cancer, but can you come back in six months?” Dr. Joyce says of how her story began.
She returned in January for another mammogram and said they needed to do an ultrasound. The lady took a while, reaching for Dr. Joyce’s lymph nodes as she tried to figure out what was going on. The doctor came in shortly and said they had found a cyst, and they saw something black behind the cyst.
Showing the image to Dr. Joyce, she asked how big it was? They said it was very small, about 3 millimeters, saying she never would have felt it. The next step was a biopsy.
Dr. Joyce called her surgeon, scheduling the biopsy for February 20. During that appointment, she recalls lying on the table and the doctor saying, “I believe this is going to be a good outcome.”
“I thought he would say I did not have cancer. The following Sunday before church an alert came over my phone letting me know there was a new test result in my records. Immediately it came up: You have ductal carcinoma in Situ. I looked at my husband, and I said, ‘I have breast cancer.’ I felt numb.”
Something told Dr. Joyce to look at her results again and she saw that the cancer had not moved. She considers herself very fortunate.
The surgeon said, “It is really small, only 3 millimeters. We got this. “We will remove it so you will be cancer free.”
Dr. Joyce scheduled her surgery for early March to remove the cancer. When she went back for her follow-up appointment, and they let her know she was cancer free. They did recommend sending her to radiation and oncology so she could understand her options.
“I went over there and never ever thought I would walk in the cancer center as a patient,” Dr. Joyce said.
They helped her learn about her cancer, saying that it was made up of nothing but hormones, offering her the option of radiation treatment or a pill to stop the hormones. Dr. Joyce proceeded with the pill and the radiation, leading to exhaustion (in part due to her being anemic). Radiation was only 5 days, 10-15 minutes each day.
“The week after radiation, I was so tired – I could not keep my eyes open,” Dr. Joyce said.
She went on to say how scared she was at this time.
“At one time I questioned my faith and asked God why this was happening to me.”
It is now clear to hear that God wants her to talk to people about breast cancer and mammograms. Her staff knew she was sick and out of the office, but they did not know what was going on. So, Dr. Joyce had a meeting and shared her story.
“Thank God, because two of my staff members said it had been ten years since their last mammograms, and they went to get them scheduled.”
A similar situation happened at her church where Dr. Joyce talked about her experience and reminded women in her congregation to get mammograms.
Dr. Joyce remembers giving the ultrasound technician a hard time but went on to say that she saved her life. Dr. Joyce got her a card and gift and went to visit her so she could tell her that she saved her life.
“My surgeon said she didn’t know how the tech found it, that some of these technicians have different techniques, but somehow her technique found it.”
Dr. Joyce told her surgeon: “No, God pointed her instrument to where it needed to be. He wanted me to be here to do more.”
Pictured above is Dr. Joyce ringing the bell at the cancer center after her last treatment.
She mentioned she has gone back for oncology appointments to make sure she is healing and how she is doing with the pill, if any aftereffects from radiation.
“God felt that I needed another chance and I got that. Mammograms are important. Please, everybody. If you feel ANY type of lump, even if you had a mammogram two days ago, go back to the doctor.
There are so many advances in breast treatment – people are living longer and being cured. It’s important to put your health as number one,” Dr. Joyce advises.