Girls on Film

The ad shows a woman, spade in hand, dressed for a morning in her flower garden. On closer inspection, “she” is a lifelike sculpture. On her lapel, a pink ribbon for breast cancer awareness makes it clear how she met her untimely death.

I find the ad while flipping through a magazine in the waiting room in the radiology suite, where I have had a mammogram, have been told it is abnormal, and have been left to wait for a radiologist to consult with me.

When you are waiting for the radiologist to tell you just how abnormal your mammogram looks, the last thing you want to do is see a reminder of breast cancer’s toll. But what should you be doing while you are waiting in radiology during your annual screening?

Mammograms have a regular part of my health care since I was 25. Because my mother was diagnosed with premenopausal breast cancer, I started getting screenings earlier than the average woman, who usually begins screening at age 40.

I practiced diagnostic surgical pathology at the world’s largest medical center and saw many breast biopsies under my microscope every day. Although I still dread my mammogram, I have become more savvy about how I mentally prepare for the screening.

Taking all kinds of potential problems into consideration, I have come up with a list of action points to minimize the stress of scheduling and getting a mammogram. My suggestions are based on a decade of mammograms at three academic centers in large metropolitan areas.

• Understand your insurance company’s policies regarding reimbursement for a mammogram. Last year the radiologist suggested I have an ultrasound on the same day as the mammogram. I complied. When the explanation of benefits arrived in the mail, I was surprised to find out that the insurance company did not pay for the mammogram because a second service was billed on the same day.

• Schedule your mammogram for the first two weeks of your menstrual cycle when your breasts are less tender. The compression during the exam will be less uncomfortable that way.


• When you call to make the appointment, get the mailing address in case you need to send any previous mammograms in advance of your appointment. Find out the exact physical location of the building and ask where to park.


• Consider telling a trusted friend when you are going to have your appointment, but think twice about asking a friend to go with you. When I am mustering courage, sometimes talking stresses me out, and I would feel obligated to talk to my friend. See if a friend can help you with child transportation duties if necessary.

• Plan a fun activity to follow the mammogram, but make sure it is one with a flexible start time since you won’t be able to control how much time your visit to the radiology department will take. Whether or not you receive immediate feedback on your films, it is nice to celebrate that the exam is out of the way.

• The night before the mammogram, pack your insurance card into your purse and review your breast health history, including all procedures and screening exams. You will be filling out a history sheet in the office before your mammogram. Also, check your calendar and write down your LMP—you will be asked for it. Having this information on hand will keep you from feeling ill-prepared while completing the necessary paperwork.

• Don’t wear deodorant; do wear separates. Pack your deodorant into your purse the night before your appointment--this way you won’t reach for it out of habit the morning of your mammogram, and it will be in your possession when you get dressed after the appointment. Deodorant can cause aberrant spots on the X-ray. If you accidentally apply deodorant the morning of your exam, don’t sweat it: The radiology suite will have moist towelettes for you to use. During the mammogram you will be asked to undress from the waist up. If you wear separates, you may be less cold during the procedure. Wear a top that won’t wrinkle after it has been folded into a plastic bag and left there for an hour. This way you’ll look fabulous for your post-appointment activity.


• Eat breakfast before your mammogram. Even if you are scheduled for an eight o’clock appointment and think you’ll be at the bagel shop by nine o’clock, eat at home. You never know what delays could occur or what additional tests could be performed over the course of the morning. Stress plus an empty stomach is a sure recipe for unease.

• Be very careful when you walk through the parking lot. Stay aware of your surroundings and don’t allow yourself to slip into a mood of anxious unawareness. If you have an early morning appointment, the parking lot for patients may be used by employees who are speeding into the lot to find a spot. Look for crosswalks and don’t assume cars will stop for you.

• Take a portable music player. I say this for two reasons. You will make yourself unavailable for chit chat with well-meaning people whose story may only make you more anxious. Secondly, you will be able to drown out the audio of the TV in the waiting room that may be blaring a talk show dialogue about cancer, a faltering economy, or anything else that could zap your positive attitude.

• Take your own reading material that you have selected based on its low likelihood of stressing you out. Books that you already read but would like to revisit are excellent choices.

• When you leave the mammography suite, be certain that you completely understand when you are supposed to return to the clinic for your next appointment. Mark that date on your calendar as soon as you return home and call to schedule that appointment two months in advance.

I hope you share this information. The idea is to get more “girls on film.”

My day in the radiology suite ended with an ultrasound that showed benign changes; I left and took myself to lunch.

"And she wonders how she ever got here as she goes under again."
"Girls on Film" Duran Duran