Fewer Place Settings, Longer Grateful List, My Survivor Story

Grateful she sought care for breast cancer during pandemic

By Megan Benson, 39-year-old breast cancer survivor, business owner, wife, and mom of three.

I never imagined that at age 38 I would be diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer. It wasn’t common in my family history. It wasn’t in my care plan to start receiving annual mammograms until I turned 40. However, after finding a lump during a self-exam, I reluctantly visited my OB-GYN, who gave me a prescription for a mammogram and ultrasound.

I went for the screening at the beginning of March 2020.Only one day after I heard the words, “You have cancer,” the entire world began spiraling into the panic of lockdowns due to COVID-19. It would have been scary to receive a diagnosis of this magnitude at any time, but facing it during the pandemic was even more daunting.

Megan Benson before treatment.

However, throughout all of my doctors’ visits at the AtlantiCare Cancer Care Institute, in my physicians’ offices, and in the hospital, my husband and I were treated with so much compassion.

We were given an extraordinary level of care by the nurses, technicians, doctors, and all staff. There were so many safety protocols put into place at each office. This made us feel very safe as we walked this precarious journey without the extra fear of contracting this coronavirus. Temperature checks, masks, hand sanitizing stations, Plexiglas barriers at desks, rigorous cleaning of common areas, social distancing, and limited seating in waiting rooms put our minds at ease during each visit.

During my cancer treatment, I was eager to share my story with followers on social media, friends and family. I’ve found this a good way to educate people about the signs and symptoms of breast cancer. I’ve also offered suggestions for how others can offer support to their loved ones going through difficult situations. I connected with fellow warriors and survivors.

I’ve found that now, more than ever, it is important to reach out to ask for help and encouragement when you need it. Having a community, even if it was through social media, helped me feel less alone. I was even able to inspire others to get screenings.

I’m usually the one who wants to make the chicken soup or offer to clean a friend’s house when she is sick. I couldn’t do that through my treatment. So I shared my story.

A young mom I met through social media had a mammogram after seeing my posts. She from that mammogram that she had breast cancer. It can be uncomfortable to share our personal stories. But I’ve learned there is so much good that can happen when we are generous with our stories, whether they are painful or praise-worthy.

Megan Benson during her treatments.

An article in the Journal of the American Medical Association noted breast cancer diagnoses were down 51.8 percent in March and April. This was not because cancer became less prevalent. Women were simply not getting screenings. We know that early detection greatly increases the likelihood of survival. It might be less convenient during these trying times to put our health first. It is vitally important to continue monthly self-exams and have mammograms based on age and risk factors. And please, call your doctor if you feel something might not be right – anywhere in your mind or body.

This Thanksgiving will be different than it has most years in my home. The will be fewer seats at the table. I will be celebrating it with my immediate family only. The list of what I am thankful for will be longer than ever. My new hair grows more every day!

More seriously, I am grateful for the relationships I’ve made with fellow sister warriors and for the care my amazing medical team provided me. I am thankful for my health; and most importantly, for the gift of time. Every second, minute and hour with my children, my husband, family and friends is so precious to me. I hate to think that my prognosis might have been far worse if I’d waited until the threat of COVID-19 was over.

The truth is, we don’t know when the world will return to how it was before March, 2020. Because I was brave enough to get a mammogram and to face breast cancer treatment during the pandemic, I will be around for many more years to see when it finally does.