BI-RADS 3!

 Today was my six-month follow-up diagnostic mammogram after the breast biopsy that scared the living daylights out of me earlier this year.

Six months ago, I was BI-RADS 4B. That meant the finding was suspicious enough that a biopsy was recommended. But the biopsy did not come back simply benign. It showed normal breast tissue—which completely befuddled the doctors because it did not clearly explain the area they had seen on imaging.

They were concerned enough that they wanted me to have the area removed by a breast surgeon and undergo additional testing.

Today I went back for the follow-up diagnostic mammogram, held my breath, prayed, and waited.

And today’s result: BI-RADS 3 — probably benign. The area they biopsied is unchanged in appearance and actually a little smaller, measuring 10 × 5 mm, compared with 12 × 7 mm previously. There were no new suspicious masses, calcifications, or architectural distortion.

I will happily take that news.

Apparently, at 52, my boobs have decided they need their own medical storyline. They have supporting characters, close-ups, follow-up appointments, plot twists, and enough photographs to qualify for their own coffee-table book.

But underneath the humor, I mean this very seriously:

Please get your screening mammogram.

Do not let embarrassment stop you. Do not let being busy stop you. Do not let fear stop you. And please do not keep putting it off because nothing hurts or you cannot feel a lump.

Put the date in your phone. Set a reminder. Schedule the next one before you forget.

Do not let more than 365 days go by between your routine annual screening mammograms when annual screening is what your healthcare provider recommends for you. And if your doctor has you on a different follow-up schedule because of a prior finding, follow that schedule.

Yes, mammograms are awkward. Yes, somebody is going to position your breast like they’re trying to parallel park it between two pieces of machinery. Yes, for several seconds you may question every decision that led you to that particular moment.

Do it anyway.

A few uncomfortable minutes are worth information that could save your life.

Today I am incredibly grateful. Grateful that the area is slightly smaller. Grateful for careful radiologists, mammography technologists, and doctors who took an unusual finding seriously. And above everything else, I give all the glory and honor to God.

I prayed through the fear six months ago, and I prayed while I waited today.

So this is your reminder from me—and apparently from my exceptionally photographed right breast:

Check the girls. Schedule the mammogram. Keep the appointment. And when that annual reminder comes around, don’t swipe it away.

Your boobs can be dramatic.

Your screening schedule shouldn’t be. ❤️