Breast Cancer: Marilyn's Survivor Story
This breast cancer diagnosis at a glance
- Sex
- Female
- Treatment
- surgery and reconstruction
- Outcome
- Cancer-Free / NED
Treatment course, step by step
- Double mastectomy with breast reconstruction.
What happened, in summary
Marilyn Alejandro-Rodriguez was approaching 40 when her primary care doctor reminded her to schedule her first screening mammogram. She felt healthy and had no breast symptoms. The baseline mammogram showed a subtle area behind the right nipple. Marilyn was traveling in Puerto Rico when the clinic called several times, prompting her to arrange follow-up imaging.
What she expected to be a brief diagnostic mammogram became an hour-long appointment that included an ultrasound. A small mass was found in the right breast, and colleagues helped her move the biopsy to an earlier date. The biopsy confirmed breast cancer. A breast MRI was then used to assess the extent of the disease and check the other breast.
Marilyn chose a double mastectomy with breast reconstruction and was later described as cancer-free. She credited the radiologist's attention to an almost-normal first mammogram, along with the support of colleagues and clinicians, for helping her move quickly from screening to diagnosis and treatment. Her experience showed how an unexpected callback after a baseline mammogram can sometimes identify cancer before any symptoms appear.
Where this story comes from
This is a lay summary of an account first published by Cleveland Clinic. Read the original in full
How we source and attribute stories Accuracy and limitations
These are lay summaries of published cancer stories, for information only. No two cancers behave the same way, and nothing here predicts your own diagnosis or replaces advice from your oncology team. Read the full disclaimer