For Wiley Ford cancer patient, mammogram was 'my friend'

Oct. 25—CUMBERLAND — With no close family history of breast cancer, Joyce Michaels said she was surprised by a diagnosis of the disease earlier this year.

A mammogram "was definitely my friend," she said.

A breast cancer screening for Michaels, 72, of Wiley Ford, West Virginia, showed abnormal imaging in March 2023.

That led to a biopsy followed by a breast cancer diagnosis.

"My nurse practitioner called and gave me the news," Michaels said and added she had surgery, performed by Dr. Michael Stasko at UPMC Western Maryland, followed by chemotherapy.

Last month, Michaels finished the chemotherapy and will undergo radiation therapy.

"I'm feeling great," she said.

Michaels and her husband are retired teachers. She taught fifth grade at Frankfort Middle School in Mineral County, West Virginia, and he taught seventh and eighth grades in Washington County.

Prior to her cancer treatment, Michaels bicycled roughly 150 miles per week.

During her chemotherapy, Michaels continued to ride her bicycle and work with a physical fitness trainer.

"I've tried to stay active and I think that has helped me," Michaels said.

Michaels is a patient of Dr. Blanche Mavromatis, director of the breast program at the UPMC Western Maryland Center for Breast Care, Schwab Family Cancer Center.

Mavromatis said Michaels was "very compliant" about getting regular mammograms.

"(Her) tumor was picked up relatively early," Mavromatis said and added the growth was somewhat small.

The latest updated recommendation from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends women who are at average risk for breast cancer should start mammogram screening at age 40 and get one every two years until age 74.

Prior guidelines indicated 50 was the starting age.

"Women were being missed," Mavromatis said.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, risk factors for breast cancer include "being a woman and getting older."

Additional risk factors people can't control include genetic mutations.

"A woman's risk for breast cancer is higher if she has a mother, sister, or daughter (first-degree relative) or multiple family members on either her mother's or father's side of the family who have had breast or ovarian cancer," the CDC reports.

Starting menstrual periods before age 12 and menopause after age 55 expose women to hormones longer, which raises their risk of getting breast cancer.

"Dense breasts have more connective tissue than fatty tissue, which can sometimes make it hard to see tumors on a mammogram," the CDC reports. "Women with dense breasts are more likely to get breast cancer."

Women who have had breast cancer are more likely to get breast cancer a second time.

Several lifestyle factors can reduce the risk of developing breast cancer.

"Women who are not physically active have a higher risk of getting breast cancer," the CDC reports.

Older women who are overweight or obese have a higher risk of getting breast cancer than those at a healthy weight.

"Some forms of hormone replacement therapy — those that include both estrogen and progesterone — taken during menopause can raise risk for breast cancer when taken for more than five years," the CDC reports.

Certain oral contraceptives also have been found to raise breast cancer risk.

"Having the first pregnancy after age 30, not breastfeeding, and never having a full-term pregnancy can raise breast cancer risk," the CDC reports.

Studies also show that a woman's risk for breast cancer increases with the more alcohol she drinks.

"Research suggests that other factors such as smoking, being exposed to chemicals that can cause cancer, and changes in other hormones due to night shift working also may increase breast cancer risk," the CDC reports.

Mavromatis also talked of ongoing clinical trials.

At UPMC Western Maryland, 235 patients are involved in a study that includes a diagnostic test performed on their breast cancer tissue.

Data collected will provide information about the characteristics of their cancer to help make treatment decisions.

Additional patients are enrolled in a study that evaluates the use of positron emission tomography scans to determine if they are responding to treatment for bone metastases.

UPMC Western Maryland also has access to studies via the UPMC Hillman Cancer Center Community Network.

Mavromatis stressed the importance of exercise as "a very good way" to better tolerate breast cancer treatment physically and emotionally.

Bicycling was an asset for Michaels, she said.

"I think it helped her cope," Mavromatis said.

Teresa McMinn is a reporter for the Cumberland Times-News. She can be reached at 304-639-2371 or tmcminn@times-news.com.