Should have posted sooner, but things jus kept changing!

Back in April I posted that Jim seemed to be developing resistance to the hormone treatment that had kept his prostate cancer at bay for about 12 years. They told us it would happen eventually, but still scary and surprising to get to that point. His PSA had risen to about 5, and it should theoretically be zero, at least just after receiving the hormone treatment.

Lots more doctor's appointments in May and June. Trip to Cleveland for an ultra-sensitive pet scan to see if the cancer was growing (results negative). (Got to Columbus that day before they called and said "oh, wait, can you come tomorrow, the isotope didn't pass the QA test, we'll have more isotope tomorrow" - REALLY????) Talked to several oncologists, a surgeon, even got a recommendation from a noted national  specialist in this area. Finally determined  that a clinical trial made the most sense, as it was testing the effects of a slightly different drug from one already on the market, one that had less side effects and could be given earlier, before sign of a tumor.

So Jim goes in for the base level testing required for the clinical trial. Lots of paperwork, scans, and another PSA test. Result is like .7. WAIT! that has an extra decimal point (lower is good). Hmm, must be a bad test result - let's repeat. WAIT, second test is like .3. Ok this is good that it's low, but now he's not eligible for the clinical trial.

So lots more talking to doctor's - why would this happen? do we trust this result? what treatment now? Doctors decided one of two things happened. Either the 5.0 test result was an error, or taking Jim off a medication had jump started the hormone treatment into working again. They aren't exactly sure which, so now they are watching him like a hawk, testing his PSA every 6 weeks instead of 3 months, and double testing it. And it's continued to stay low, two more results under .5. So they'll keep testing until it rises again, and keep on with the hormone treatment. And the "cancer cloud" seems to have blown on past us again, at least for now......maybe because it's settled over other dear friends, unfortunately. :(

So we focus on the good parts of life, and the extra birthdays we get to celebrate, and look forward to the birth of our first grandchild in December. For now, for us, life is good......

Cancer still sucks

It's been a while since I updated this blog, as everything has been pretty status quo. Well, the kids keep growing up, but in terms of Jim's and my health, everything has been pretty status quo - until recently. Jim has been going every 3-4 months for a checkup with his urologist, and it seems that the hormone therapy they've had him on isn't working so well anymore. This was expected, they told us when they started this therapy that at some point it would have killed off the less aggressive cancer cells and the more aggressive cells would start to develop some critical mass. And it looks like it's that time, as normally the hormone injection drives his PSA down to nothing, and then it slowly builds back up over the next several months, but the last two injections seem to NOT have lowered the PSA.

So several scans later, it's a good news/not so good news situation. Good news is that Jim still has no evidence of a tumor or growth anywhere, including lymph nodes and bones. Bad news is that the next treatment they would put him on tends to only be covered by insurance when there IS evidence of disease. So really, we're supposed to just wait until he has a tumor??? Well the urologist is trying to get insurance to cover it, and in the meantime, Procter has a GREAT benefit where we can get a second opinion from the best doctors in the country for various diseases, so his records are being sent to the prostate cancer experts to see what they would recommend. He feels great, and in fact he will be running the Cap City half marathon with Julie at the end of this month. Here's hoping all that healthy living will help keep things at bay a while longer. Prayers appreciated, as always.

Teri

Another Year of Blessings!

I had been meaning to update this blog, not sure if anyone still reads it but it does seem to carry on "our story", and can't believe it's been almost a whole year. A year of great blessings again. Kids are all doing well, Jim and I continue to get good checkups. Jim did have to take another hormone shot this past year, as he does every 6-9 months or so, but the shot continues to keep his PSA down, and this last one didn't seem to be so bad with side effects. So he continues his "elevated PSA, no sign of active disease" status, and they continue to say there are new treatments coming out of clinical trials when the hormone shot DOES stop being as effective.

I had a bit of a scare in November, when the routine mammogram turned NOT so routine with those dreaded words "We noticed an abnormality. Likely nothing, but we need to check it out". Couple days of anxious waiting for a biopsy report before the GREAT news (received the day before Thanksgiving!) that indeed, it was nothing! Just a reminder to never take those things for granted! I did manage to loose 15 pounds this year, which I am really proud of - turned out a low thyroid level was lurking there unnoticed, and once that was addressed, all the calorie counting and exercise finally started to pay off - I'm pretty happy about that, not quite done though.....

So this Christmas finds us counting our blessings once again! Here's to a Happy and Healthy New Year to all!

WAAYYY overdue for an update!

I've been meaning to reflect and update on what's new since the last time I blogged, but didn't realize it had been 3 months! It's good news in that there's not much news, as opposed to three years ago when there was lots happening on the cancer fighting front.

For me, the finetuning of the "Build a New Boob for Teri" project continues. I had a little cosmetic touchup in early December, with one more coming later in February. A tattoo, to be specific :) Making the rebuilt part look a little closer to the original version. 

I also had a couple of OTHER implants - two cataract surgeries later, I am contact lens/glasses free for the first time since I was about 9! It's so wonderful to be able to not only see again (didn't realize how foggy those darn cataracts had gotten), but also have my vision corrected internally instead of with something I have to wear - I can wake up at night and see the clock! I am just now getting used to NOT reaching for my glasses first thing in the morning.

We had a great holiday! All the kids were back home, at least for awhile, both Thanksgiving and Christmas. How blessed are we!  We were able to stay home this year, no soccer tournament out of town to hurry away too, went skiing together and saw some Christmas sightseeing in Cincinnati, before the kids started to go their own ways again.

Jim started the year with a visit to his oncologist. Not surprisingly, since it's been last Feb since his last hormone shot to keep the prostate cancer volume low, his PSA was elevated, and so he was given another shot. But the doctor said that therapy is still working, since the PSA is rising as his testosterone rises, and NOT ahead of the testosterone, which is good news. He continues to run and work out and feels good, except for the hot flashes that will likely return in the coming weeks from the shot.  We are both happy we are able to get around, and (mostly) keep up with the kids, at least for awhile longer!

Happy 2014!

It's Breast Cancer Awareness Month.....

and the pink ribbons are all over the place! Three years ago I was starting chemo, and this October finds me lots healthier (though STILL struggling to loose weight :( ). I also just had some "finishing touch" surgery on my reconstruction, one more little step to go, but I'm "filling things out" nicer these days. Much luckier than others, as Jenny and I flew to California last month for the memorial service for her boyfriend Mike's mom. Her breast cancer had come back late last year, and though her treatment last winter/spring looked like it had been successful, seems like things had progressed to her liver unfortunately. Very sad loss for his family, makes you realize how lucky you are that you get another day/month/year. We also said goodbye to Jim's dad in August. After a great 95th birthday party for him in July, he wore out and left us a month later. True to what they say, he had prostate cancer, but that wasn't what he died from, his heart just wore out.  Jim ran the prostate cancer run here in Sept as well, a sign that he continues to do well, his PSA stays low, he hasn't had to take a hormone treatment for awhile,  and he looks healthier than ever, so we hope things continue to stay that way. And several walked the Komen Race in Cincinnati in Sept with us as well. Will do that again in Columbus in May, if anyone in the area wants to join us, they've opened registration already, in honor of October Breast Cancer Awareness month. Here's to a time when we don't NEED to be as aware, because we don't see cancer affecting as many!

Today is my birthday

Aren't I lucky to celebrate another one? I am reminded how lucky I am, especially since hearing of two friends who lost their battles with cancer within the last two weeks.

Lots of good news with the Deans of late......Amy committed to play college soccer at University of Akron, where she will start in fall of 2014. Kristin graduated from grade school, leaving me a sniffling mess for a week or so recalling the kids' younger days and how quickly that time is flying by. Jenny moved to Marietta Oh earlier this summer :( to start her Physicians Assistant Program studies :). I got to go to Virginia with Becky for a week at AAU basketball Nationals, where they finished 6th and we got some sightseeing in as well. Steve is home with us working for the summer, and I've enjoyed the time with him a  great deal.  Julie and Shea spent a week at Hilton Head with us on vacation. We celebrated Jim's dad's 95th birthday with his family earlier in July. I hope I live that long, and I hope that many friends and family come celebrate with me! And I'm grateful for all the fun times, both big and small, that I get to experience along the way!

Julie, Shea, Jenny, Steve and I walked in the Komen Columbus Race for the Cure in May, and I've started a team to walk in Cincinnati's Race for the Cure, hoping to walk with more of my Cincinnati friends  and celebrate life and hope more often. Want to join me?  Google Race for the Cure Cincinnati and look for Team Dean Double Jeopardy, or email/call me. If you can't join, maybe you'll make a donation so we can keep fighting this disease that is affecting too many families and taking too many people too young. And in the meantime, enjoy every day.

A Good Week.....

Things have been status quo for awhile, and status quo is not a bad thing, but its been a busy week, with good outcomes so far. Last week Jim had his every 3-4 month checkup, and his PSA continues to be low, as expected, but you always worry when you go for those PSA checks. Then this past Saturday, Jenny, Stephen and I joined Julie and Shea at the Komen Columbus Race for the Cure. What started as an overcast day turned into a great day for a walk, always great exercise but also doing our little bit to give Julie more grant money in her job with Komen. When I'm surrounded by a sea of pink shirts like that and realize how many folks are dealing with cancer, and I see all those "In Memory Of" tributes people wear, I'm reminded that life looks pretty darn good because you are still here!  And life will look a little better next week, and I hope I will too, as surgery on Tues, May 21, should wrap up most of the "Build Teri a new boob" project just in time for summer.  :)

How Could I Forget my Better Half - JIM!

I forgot, among all the surgery reports, to mention Jim's checkup. Jim takes a hormone shot every so often to keep his prostate cancer at bay. There was a report from the medical research last fall that indicated it might be better to take this shot continuously, rather than every so often. Problem is that the shot has side effects that aren't great (heart problems, bone density problems, hot flashes, etc). Jim's doctor  reviewed his case with his peers via their "Tumor Board" monthly meeting (really makes you want to be a part of THAT group, doesn't it????) Their perspective - the known side effects don't seem to be outweighed by the suspected benefits, and so he's continuing on the "every 3-6 months" timing for the hormone shot. EXCEPT the doc did go ahead and give him the shot in February. Doc said he'd rather give it to him now, and likely skip through the summer, since the hot flashes are more inconvenient then. So he's "flashing" now instead in July :) I like to think Jim's handling the hot flashes for the family, since I seem to have escaped that issue - isn't that nice of him! :)

Month after my Half Boob Job....

I've been meaning to post an update, but its been a busy month.

I feel really good, and the surprise fluid tested out to be nothing, so no bad news there. I healed up pretty well from surgery. I have a scar acrss my back, where the surgeon took skin to create a pocket in the front, that goes from under my armpit about halfway across my back. Most of it will be under a bra, guess my string bikini days are over - oh, that's right, they've BEEN over! The worst part was the surgical drains - I had two initially, the first came out after a week, but the second has been hanging around, literally, until today - finally draining little enough that they were able to remove it. Now the incision it left just needs to heal. And I need to "outgrow" my afternoon nap, which has become pretty standard for me since I've been off work. But I can finally sleep at night on the side the drain was on, so I'm pretty excited about that news!

Two weeks after my surgery Amy had foot surgery - repairing an injury from soccer about 9 months ago, she was able to play through the the majority of her college recruiting season with cortisone shots, but it was time to finally get it fixed. She is on crutches and using a scooter for 7 weeks (5 left), so she makes my little drains look pretty wimpy to complain about.

A week after Amy's surgery, Jenny had surgery on her wrist to fix some tendonitis that had been hanging around for a couple years and increasingly bothering her. She thought it best to get it fixed before starting grad school (Physician Assistant program) in a couple of months. Probably a good decision, but made for a long several weeks - everyone was vying for the same couch and TV remote, and we had to keep all the pain meds and antibiotics straight. Hopefully the worst of that is behind us (well, for everyone but Amy who still have several weeks/months of recovery ahead of her)!

Phase 2 of "The Boob Job" will be sometime in May. In the meantime, I'm a little lopsided, but it does feel different, and better, having SOMETHING on that side! I'm glad I decided to try reconstruction again - hoping to get things mostly finished up before we get too deep into the summer.

Quick post-surgery update

Mom was in surgery for about 4 hours (I think). The tram- flap procedure was successful, meaning the doctors were able to move tissue around to build an area for reconstruction.  Unfortunately, the surgeon found some fluid buried within her tissue. We think this is the same fluid that her oncologist had already found, and there are no indications at all that it would be cancerous. The fluid is being tested to make sure it wasn't an infection or anything nefarious. This obstacle did mean that the surgeon couldn't continue with the reconstruction procedure, until he knew what it was, and that takes 72 hours. So basically, mom's reconstruction got cancelled due to inclement weather at halftime. To be continued in approximately two months.

She is staying overnight at Christ, and will be home tomorrow morning. She sounds good and is comfortable and ready for bed! I think in the grand scheme of things, though this is a set back, she's just happy to be in the position of health that she can be having these procedures, so is generally fine with the delay. I'll let her fill in the details that I haven't quite gleaned from interpreting doctors words through our parents when she's home!

Thanks for all your prayers,
Julie and the rest of Deans (/ McMahons)

What's Next?.....

Jim and I both had good checkups in December. Since we both see the same radiation oncologist, we schedule our checkups with her together, and since she has a daughter that also plays soccer, we always have a nice long visit with her - she is very generous with her time, and likes to catch up on how the whole family is doing. Jim's urologist is also pleased with his progress, though he is considering moving Jim from intermittent hormone therapy to continuous - it helps to keep the prostate cancer at bay, but it's also hard on your bones and your heart. The doctor planned to review Jim's case with his peers, and Jim will probably learn more at his February checkup.

Teri has news too. 18 months after all the active treatments are complete, all 3 doctors say no signs of the cancer coming back, and so she is going to have another breast reconstruction surgery. While wearing a prosthesis isn’t horrible, it’s not the most comfortable thing, and swim suits are a bit tough. So Feb 13 is surgery day. My new line -  “I’m getting a new boob for Valentine’s Day!” (We make some sick jokes around our house these days J ) The plastic surgeon will take some skin from my back and swing it around to put some additional skin in the front, and then use an implant to build a mound. Then they make the other side match, so I really am getting a complete boob job! Recovery is expected to be 2-4 weeks, so a nice little break from work too. They might not be able to do everything in one surgery, so there might be some followup work in a couple more months, but hopefully mostly complete before summertime.  A little scary, but exciting too. Will post a picture of the “new me” later! In the meantime, please keep all these doctors in your prayers - we are counting a lot on their wisdom and knowledge and skill!

Merry Christmas!

We are indeed blessed this Christmas. Not only a new son-in-law, but good checkups for Jim and Teri to celebrate too. Though Jim's PSA started to rise again, 7 months after his last hormone shot, the doctor continues to think the hormone therapy is the best option right now, as more options are coming out of clinical trials and being vetted and debated. Though the hormone therapy isn't working for as long as it first did, that was expected, and it is indeed still working. And since Jim runs to battle the side effects (bone and heart problems) he looks great! Teri had a good round of checkups too - all still seems to be clear, and she is talking to the plastic surgeon about possible reconstruction options, maybe in the springtime.  Now she needs to lose weight like Jim to get back into bikini shape for the summer - well, maybe just swin suit shape!

It's amazing the difference a couple years can make. Two years ago my cancer was back, my mom had passed, and our family was feeling a lot like "Job" from the Bible - "really, God, can you send one more bad thing this way?" and of course, he could, but he didn't, and instead he sent healing love, supportive friends, and a path out of the dark times. And tomorrow, we celebrate a pinnacle of GOOD times, as Julie weds the love of her life, Shea McMahon, surrounded by family and friends and our Healing Lord Jesus Christ.

For any who would like to join us virtually, the technology of the times is evident at the church provides a webcast of the service! Who'd have thunk it?

To access the wedding, go to www.saint-max.org and scroll to the bottom where it says ChurchCast (icon), click that and then there will be an opportunity to watch (play) if you want to view live, beginning Sat Nov 3, at 6:30 pm, or if you want to view it after, it will be listed in the archive section. If you have any questions there is a number on the page to call their support team.

 

Please keep Julie and her new family, and us and our everchanging family, in your prayers, and we will keep you in ours as well. Thanks for all the support you all continue to provide!

The Great Prostate Cancer Challenge

It's been about two years since we started this blog, and I guess we are in a pretty good place considering where we were then. Saturday, September 8th, Dad completed his 3rd Great Prostate Cancer Challenge 5K. I ran with him (went last year, but couldn't join because of wisdom teeth surgery!). It was a nasty rainy day that became a beauitful one just in time for the race. Sort of fitting for the last couple of months of news for him. He found out in May that his last round of hormone therapy was not as lasting as we had hoped, and he would have to have another round. This is a treatment with a lot of uncomfortable side effects for him, especially to suffer through all summer. So we are all thrilled that his latest visit to the oncologist in August (the day before his birthday) brought the news that his PSA levels remained undetectable, indicating the last treatment had at least lasted 3 months. We are hoping that each round will last as long as possible, so the news we hope for is that at his next 3 month visit, he will get the same news. The first few rounds of treatment lasted him over a

year, so we are hoping for improved duraiton for the next few.

Dad and I at the Urology Group's 5K in Norwood.
Dad won an Oscar Robertson signed basketball!

This is all a lesson in being an advocate for your own treatment. In the last month, two new prostate cancer drugs were rushed to the forefront for FDA approval due to their tremendous success in clinical trials. One of these could be the next treatment strategy for Dad, though fingers crossed the treatment he is on now will last years and years. In the last month, several studies have also emerged claiming that the intermittent therapy Dad has been on is not as successful as the continuous treaetment with hormone therapy. Unfortunately, the side effects of the therapy make this a difficult treatment decision. He opted to go off of the treatment for the next few months, while the doctors wait for more research to confirm or dispute the current evidence. Keeping abreast of these issues is obviously very important, and the doctors don't always bring these up first, so doing your own research is always a tremendous aid!

So for now, Dad is enjoying the diminishment of the side effects of his last round, Mom is enjoying her current health (though battling some small, continuing issues from her treatments) as well as Dad's lack of hot flashes, tiredness, lack of sleep, etc. And everyone (including me) is trying to exercise and eat themselves into their wedding clothes for my November wedding, where I will feel like the most blessed daughter in the world to have both my parents there.

Hello all! It' been awhile since we've posted, which means good news all around! However, Jim went in for a PSA check-up this week and got some not so good news. The PSA level is increased again, meaning the cancer started to grow again, which means it's time for another round of hormone treatment. This is a little discouraging because the last treatment lasted for 18 months, so we thought that this one would last for 12-15 but it only lasted for 8 months. We knew there was going to be a decline in its effectiveness, but it's a bummer that it happened this quickly. However, with all of the cancer research going on in the area of prostate cancer, we know there are many other options once this one stops working!

So in the meantime, dad will deal with the hot flashes and crankiness that comes along with the treatment. The good side is that this is reaffirming his belief that all his early morning workouts and healthy eating is actually helping to stop the cancer from growing as fast so he will get back into that since the weather is getting nice out again.

Other than continuing to run around like a crazy person, mom hasn't had much medical news going on so that's all the health updates for now. In other news, Julie started a new job at the Columbus affiliate of the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation so she's busy working on research funding for all those breast cancer patients out there like mom! Well, that's all for now so I better get back to studying for finals this week! Thank you all again for your continued prayers and kindness! We are truly blessed to have such amazing friends and family in our lives!

Jenny

Just checking in....

Nothing much new here health wise, which is good. Teri had checkups with three different docs every 3-6 months (thank heaven for good health insurance!!), and they say assume the cancer is gone, keep checking in case it isn't, and oh, by the way, loose some weight- have heard that message before so trying really hard to eat less and exercise more. No scans or blood tests or other indicators, just physical exams hoping to not find anything. And my hair keeps doing interesting things, which is fine with me since it looks SOOOOO much better than last year this time, especially since I didn't have any at all last year!
Jim has to work hard to find time to keep running in the cold winter weather, but he manages pretty well. His latest hormone treatment worked pretty well, as noted earlier in the blog, so now he is off it until his PSA starts to go back up, hopefully not for another 12-18 months.

So we are keeping busy thinking about and planning for Julie's upcoming wedding, Nov 3 here in Cinti, counting our blessings, hoping everyone stays healthy, and trying to enjoy every day in the middle of the business that makes up life!

Some more good news

Happy new year to all of you! 2012, like 2011, comes with good cancer news for the Deans. As good as it can be anyways. Dad had another round of androgen deprivation therapy back in the early fall. ADT comes in the form of a shot, which goes around and starves all the cancer out. We know its worked when his PSA is lowered enough to satisfy his oncologist. So, for Christmas, Santa/God gave dad a PSA reading of " undetectable ", meaning the ADT had starved the cancer down to microscopic levels. (mom also had surgery the same day for trigger finger, unrelated to any cancer treatments we think) So that means Dad can go off the ADT until his PSA begins to go up again. Thus far he has had two rounds, and both worked in just one treatment, which is great because eventually each round can become less effective as time goes on. He's gotten the best out of each one so far, and being on the treatment less also means less of the hot sweats and negative heart and bone effects. He's still running like a champ, too! Only bad news this time was that his white blood cell count was down significantly- which the doctors didn't seem worried about but he is making sure to have double checked.

Meanwhile, 7/8 of the Deans traveled to Florida for Amy's Disney Soccer Showcase. Amy was tough and had a very impressive tournament (at least in this big sister's eyes- that girl is a tank!). While there, we went to Universal Studios and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter where we sipped on some delightful Butterbeer, and reminisced about how nice it was (at least for our feet) to have a wheel chair exactly a year before while mom was on chemo. And at the same time- how absolutely not worth it all that was for a wheelchair to rest in! We are very happy that God has brought us in the direction He has since last years' trip, which seemed to kick off a new year with much better health outlooks for our parents. We loved that trip last year, but this year to be doing it with a cancer free Mom and clean PSA Dad was fantastic.

Best to all of you for a healthy and happy year!

Time for an Update

Gosh, I can't believe its been 2 months since I've posted anything here. We had a great time at the Making Strides for Breast Cancer walk - Jim and Becky couldn't walk with us as Becky was playing in the soccer State Cup final that morning, but we stayed in touch with her game through Jim's text updates - they lost in penalty kicks as we were walking down Pete Rose Way. But it was a great morning for a walk, with lots of friends joining us - I know I was pretty tired afterwards, and we came home and had ribbon bagels for brunch. Thanks to all who walked, but especially Julie Heine who joined us from Columbus for the weekend (and smiled through all the soccer games we dragged her to along the way).

A little update on Jim this time - as expected, his PSA count started rising a bit, and he received another hormone shot to kill off the prostate cancer - the doctor wants to keep the volume of it down. Jim is wishing the hormone treatment didn't come with hot sweats that wake him in the middle of the night, but he's a trooper and doesn't complain about it. The soccer schedule this fall kept him from running as much as he'd like, but he'll get back into it (I wish I could be as optimistic about getting into an exercise routine myself. I picked a rowong and cycling machine for my 30 year anniversary gift from P&G this year, and they are both still sitting in the box in the basement - one of these days......) 

I'm having a little trouble with swelling where there isn't supposed to be any - not lymphedema, but edema, and so I have to start wearing a compression vest under my clothes  - glad it's winter and its not too hot. Just a little inconvenience given everything else.

Thanksgiving was SOOOO much better this year than last - last year it was the first holiday without my mom, and I still remember my dad looking across the table at me that day (I felt lousy, and probably looked it, and was wearing my wig) and he teared up, which of course caused me to do the same. THIS year on Thanksgiving we were grateful for lots of things - though we still miss Mom everyday, Jim and I both seem to have warded off the Big C, at least for a little longer, Jim is working, and the biggest news of all - Julie and her boyfriend Shea became engaged right before Thanksgiving. After Christmas they plan to get down to some serious planning, so no date yet, but some very good news that I know Mom is enjoying from her new view - and she doesn't have to worry about what to wear to the wedding!

Love,
Teri

So Much Money!

Hello all,

We are still a few days away from the walk in Cincinnati, but have reached, and surpassed the goal of raising $1,000. I have to admit, when I saw that was mom's goal, I was a little hesitant that we would be able to raise that much. However, I don't know why I even thought that given the people that we are surrounded by. Thank you so much to everyone that has donated to the cause, we truly could not have done it without you! Your support means more than you know to mom and our whole family. As a thank you and a continuation of the celebration, we are hosting a brunch after the walk, so feel free to come back to the house. If you still would like to donate, I have listed the link below!

Thanks again,

Jenny

Happy October!

You are surely being bombarded with pink and breast cancer awareness messages already, but a quick reminder!

If you are between 40 and older, the American Cancer Society and Susan G. Komen Foundation recommend you get an annual mammogram and clinical breast exam. For women less than 40, current recommendations are to get mammograms only if you are at high risk based on family history or other factors. Clinical breast exams are recommended at least every 3 years for women 20-39, and every year beginning at age 40.
Here's a little summary...
For more information on what makes you at "high risk", look here.

Here is a little web tool you can use to remind yourself when to schedule a mammogram/CBE.

Mom got her mammogram that found her first cancer because a woman at work reminded her- its important!

Enjoy all the pink treats!