Henda's Law

 Herself speaks. 

Content notification: concerns unglamorous breast health issues. You have been warned!

Although I put off a few health care appointments, because pandemic and all, I nevertheless summoned up the courage to make an appointment for an overdue mammogram/ultrasound screening, because of my prior history of questionable, though ultimately mercifully benign, problems.

The procedures were particularly painful this time around, likely due to where I was in my cycle (an unpredictable factor for me), and seemed to take an eternity. I needed ibuprofen afterward. Crabby. 

The results posted to the portal over last weekend, and all appears to be in order. Same previous spots without changes, and no new concerning spots.  Back to your lives, citizens, nothing to see here. 

I did notice two statements on the reports, though, that I have never noticed before on previous reports. Let's see if we learn something new!

On the mammogram report: "suboptimal examination, excess axillary breast tissue." 

Well, that's interesting but unsurprising. I've known for eons that there's a tail of breast tissue that extends up towards each armpit. The realization came decades ago after the offspring were each born: the first few days after my milk came in were an absolute agony, and included being unable to fully put my arms down because everything, including my armpits, was so swollen. Still makes me cringe just thinking about it; it was almost worse than the delivery itself. After the newborns and I settled into a nursing routine, everything settled down. Thank God. 

"Excess" is an interesting choice of word, though. How much axillary breast tissue do other women have? What if they have none? Certainly would be easier to get all relevant tissue into the mammography machine; it's impossible to get one's full scope of armpit in there. (Though to the technician's credit, she certainly managed to squash a whole lot of me into the machine.) Imagine how much less difficult/uncomfortable that might be. 

I occasionally wonder idly what it would be like to be a smaller-breasted woman. (I don't entertain those thoughts often because I am afraid of inviting harm from the Universe.) To have clothes fit properly. To be able to wear the teeny sexy bras that are not designed for more ample women. To not have strangers and acquaintances assume I have loose sexual morals purely because of the size of my breasts. (That used to be particularly annoying -- though the assumption appears to have disappeared as I've aged past my 'last day'.) To be able to wave my arms around, squeeze around obstacles, lie on my stomach, without breasts in the way. I don't know. And I don't really want to have to find out. Don't smite me, Universe.

On the ultrasound report: "Texas Henda's Law." What is that? Let's research. 

Henda’s Law changed the standard of care for EVERY woman in the State of Texas on June 17, 2011.  House Bill 2102 requires all mammography centers to specifically notify women about DENSE breast tissue and the increased risks associated therewith.

Nine years after its passage, I'm just now learning about Henda's Law. I've never been formally notified that dense breast tissue (which I know I have) has an increased risk of cancer. OK then. This might be why I'm on the twice-yearly ultrasound rotation. 

Odds, risk, percentages, math. It's hard to know what it all means. 

At any rate, I'm relieved that nothing untoward appears to be happening breast-wise. I'll keep my fingers crossed that all continues the be fine going forward, and we'll check again in six months or so.

Please, Universe.