Her mother’s urging lead to quick diagnosis, early action
One morning in early October 1993, I was taking a shower when I felt a lump in my left breast. I remembered that I had recently read about breast cancer in several magazines.
I was scared at first. I had heard about several women in my community that had suffered from breast cancer. I remember telling my mother about it and she told me to see a doctor at once. I told her my concerns about not having proper insurance and not having a regular doctor. Her reply was to go! I sat on that for about a week, then decided to make an appointment at Little River Health Clinic. One of the nurses performed a breast exam. Then, she commented that she would contact Wadley Regional Medical Center. I remember having a biopsy and then was scheduled for surgery. Some of the details are kind of hazy during this time.
I had a lumpectomy, followed by chemo and radiation. My surgeon was Dr. William Tompkins and the other doctors were Dr. J.D. Patel and Dr. Morris. After six weeks, I returned to work. A lot of co-workers asked me questions but I never went into detail about the things I’d gone through.
I’m kind of private and it was all overwhelming to me. I know I tried to lead as normal of a life as possible. After about a year or so, I noticed pain and swelling in my left arm. I at first attributed this to my job at Aalfs Manufacturing, which was very strenuous. After going back and forth to several doctors, I learned I had lymphedema. I had never heard of this before. It was back before the Internet.
After awhile I went to rehab at St. Michael’s Rehab Center. Because this was considered a pre-existing condition, I was having trouble with my new insurance. I remembered two of the nurses in my reserve unit at Little Rock, Ark. Air Force Base elevating my arm and giving me tips on how to alleviate some of the swelling.
Also someone let me use a lymphedema pump for a few months.
I’m grateful for all their kindness. A few years later, Dianna Keener helped me acquire compression sleeves. One of my church members, Doris A. Walker, and I would discuss our conditions. She is a breast cancer survivor, too. She would give me information about the Race for the Cure, which I knew little about at the time. She also made sure my family and I had the T-shirts.
In 2014, I went in for a routine mammogram and they saw a suspicious mass in my left breast. I was scheduled for a stereotactic biopsy, which showed microcalcifications. I was sent to see Dr. Roger Kim at LSU Medical Center by former doctor, Beverly Simpson Greer. He suggested I have surgery. It was precancerous cells.
At that time it was very stressful because I was going to two different hospitals in Shreveport and working long hours at my job. I had the surgery on Oct. 14, 2014. I continued to see Dr. Kim until July of this year.
In conclusion, I would like to give thanks to my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. I’m also grateful for the moral support of my friends and family, especially my late parents Jim and Lucie Hopkins and daughter Eboni and to my brother Jimmie for driving me to a lot of my post-surgical appointments.
In 2016, my then manager/director, on my suggestion allowed us to have a pink day every Friday in October. I was surprised, to say the least. A lot of my co-workers were supportive in this cause.