ROME, Ga., April 5, 2024 – Tammy Cowan wasn't even sure if she should get a mammogram 12 years ago. She was only 44 years old but decided to listen to her doctor. She is glad she did.
“My doctor told me I should, but I was thinking I had to be 50. That was my first mammogram," said Cowan, who is now a medical assistant at The Breast Center at Atrium Health Floyd Medical Center.
She got her scan performed on the Mobile Mammography Coach, the rolling unit that carries Floyd's breast health services to underserved areas of northwest Georgia and northeast Alabama.
The unit is outfitted with a state-of-the-art, digital mammography machine and staffed by clinicians who are specially trained in screening mammography. It offers a unique advantage for those who need a mammogram but want to minimize lost work time because of travel requirements.
That mammogram revealed she had inflammatory breast cancer, which can often go undiagnosed and accounts for only 1% to 5 % of all breast cancer cases.
“It was literally something the radiologist saw. If I had not had a mammogram, it would not have been detected early," Cowan said.
Now she gets an MRI and mammogram every year at The Breast Center, where she has worked as a medical assistant for five years.
She said her experience helps her offer comfort and support to patients.
“When we do genetic testing with new patients, I'm usually the one who goes in and talks to them before the nurse practitioner. They usually tell me they feel so much better seeing me and knowing that I had breast cancer, too."
Cowan has only good things to say to patients about The Breast Center, and not just because she works there.
“I tell them it's wonderful, of course. When I came here as a patient, they were wonderful and helped me work through it. And now, I work here, and I have been on both sides."
She has a daughter who just turned 28. Because of her health history, her daughter will start getting an annual mammogram at 34.
Cowan said she is vocal about the importance of getting an annual mammogram.
“I have had several friends at my church and my Bible study group ask me 'Why would I even want to know?'" I always tell them I was 44 when I had my first mammogram and if I had waited until I was 55, it would have been a lot worse."
The Breast Center Floyd first opened its doors in 2008, setting a new standard for providing quality screening diagnostic care in a timely manner.
The center is recognized by national leaders in breast health care for quality and commitment to patients. One of those commitments is the unique Know in 24 promise, a pledge to provide same-day or next-day results for women receiving a mammogram.
For more information about services or to schedule an appointment, visit Floyd.org/Mammogram or call 706-509-6840.