A Brand-New Day

Photo courtesy of Shannon Lawrence

How a 15-minute appointment on Ozarks Healthcare’s mobile mammography unit helped one nurse catch breast cancer early—and deliver her own message of hope.

Every day, Shannon Lawrence brings hope, comfort, and cheer to those she cares for as a home health nurse. It’s a job she enjoys, a mission she embraces—and one that recently took on even greater meaning following one of the most serious health scares of her life.

“Every month, you know, I go to my doctor and get my checkups done,” Lawrence said. “She lets me know when it's time for different tests and stuff, and she let me know that it was time for a mammogram.”

Regular mammograms are widely recognized as one of the most important screenings for breast cancer. Like many women, Lawrence knew the test was important, but getting to the nearest medical facility from small Winona, Missouri, where she lives, meant missing a good chunk of the workday. That’s when her general practitioner suggested a new resource that might help.

“We set up a time to do the mobile mammography unit from Ozarks Healthcare,” she said. “That really, really came in handy because if it wasn't for that bus, I don't know that I would've got that done.”

Instead of spending most of a day traveling for her screening, Lawrence said a visit to the mobile mammography unit took about 15 minutes. The outcome, however, would impact the rest of her life.

“I went to the appointment, and then I got a letter in the mail telling me that I needed to come in,” she said. “Something wasn't right.”

What the test detected—and what a biopsy would later confirm—was breast cancer. The lumps, two on her right breast, required surgery. Lawrence opted for a double mastectomy, and physicians believe they caught all of the cancer before it had a chance to spread.

Had she not visited the mobile unit, her story might have turned out much differently.

“It was a shock,” she said. “I didn't have any family who had any kind of cancer. When I got diagnosed, I didn't know what to do. It was unbelievable.

“I really, truly believe in my heart that [the mobile mammography team] saved my life. I believe that with everything in me, I do. I even went back to see the girls on the bus and hugged them and told them thank you.”

According to the Mayo Clinic, breast cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer deaths in women in the U.S. Rates continue to rise, especially among younger women. A recent report from the American Cancer Society noted that 1 in 50 women will develop invasive breast cancer by the age of 50.

Mammograms are essential in detecting breast cancer early—when it is most treatable. Unfortunately, many women do not get tested due to lack of access, lack of information, fear, or some combination of the three. For that, Lawrence has a simple message.

“If that bus comes to your town and you have not had your mammogram, I urge every woman that has not had one to do so,” she said. “It's not a bad experience. It'll save your life if there's something going on. I didn’t even know there was a mobile unit, and the first time I went, they found something and got it in time. I’d tell any woman, go to the bus and have it done. It could save your life, I promise.”

For more information, visit https://www.ozarkshealthcare.com/services/imaging-services/mobile-mammography/.