Doctors report delay in cancer screenings during COVID-19 pandemic
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- As we near the end of breast cancer awareness month, doctors are sounding the alarm that they're seeing far too many patients avoiding the doctors office because of the pandemic, and that's delaying vital cancer screenings.
Dr. Dwalah Fisher was diagnosed with an aggressive Stage 2 triple-negative breast cancer last May. The loving wife and mother of two was ready to fight.
"I began treatment with aggressive chemo," Fisher said. "I had surgery and went through radiation."
Dr. Tri Vu, an oncologist with Kelsey Seybold Clinic said Fisher was diagnosed after being screened with a mammogram.
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Vu says the most important thing about Dr. Fisher's case was that it was caught early.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic started, physicians across the country have seen a heartbreaking trend of patients who are nervous about stepping inside a doctor's office. They're waiting far too long to be diagnosed in time. Doctors say it's not just breast cancer patients but other forms of cancer as well.
"Now, you're actually seeing later stage like Stage 3 when the breast cancer is larger and gone to multiple lymph nodes, or even stage 4, which is the saddest case," Vu said. "That means we don't cure. We can only treat."
Doctors urge patients that, even though we are in a pandemic, mammograms and other cancer screenings are vital.
"Had I not gotten the screening, we don't know where or what stage I would be in, so I'm grateful for that," Fisher said.
Doctors recommend monthly self-breast exams, but for average risk patients who are 45-years-old and older, yearly mammograms are important.
If you aren't insured or have a financial hardship, there are options out there for you to get screened.
