Article content continued
Patients have had both screening and surgeries delayed because of the pandemic. Renée Langman is among them.
The Embrun woman was scheduled to undergo surgery to remove a small cancerous tumour in her breast at The Ottawa Hospital on March 25. On March 23, after the province went into lockdown, she received a call telling her it was being postponed, like other surgeries across the province considered non-urgent.
She spent almost six weeks waiting and worrying.
Langman, who is 64, says she was terrified she would contract COVID-19 while she waited, which could delay things further. Finally, at the beginning of June, she received word that the surgery would go ahead on June 3.
By then, her tumour had nearly doubled in size from eight millimetres when she was diagnosed, to 15 millimetres.
Still, Langman considers herself lucky.
The cancer had not spread to her lymph nodes, which could mean lengthy chemotherapy and a more serious prognosis.
In addition to the surgery, she underwent 15 days of radiation and is taking tamoxifen, a hormonal therapy that blocks the effect of estrogen in breast tissue. In certain breast cancers, estrogen can promote cell growth.
Langman said the weeks of not knowing when she would have surgery were stressful and worrisome.
“It is one thing to live with cancer but another thing not knowing when they are going to do something for me.”
Her experience has underscored for her the importance of doing everything possible to catch breast cancer early. She encourages others who might have missed screening appointments during the pandemic not to wait.
