RVH, Saving lives ONE MAMMOGRAM at a time!

October is BREAST CANCER Awareness month and it is a great opportunity for us to highlight the services and the staff who help us to make “MAMMORIES!”

Jenn McBean is a Breast Cancer Warrior and a strong advocate for the Breast services available right here, close to home.  Here is Jenn’s Story:

My journey with RVH began in May 2023. 

 “I was just shy of my 40th Birthday when I felt a lump on my left breast. After a visit with my family physician at the Renfrew Medical Group, I was quickly referred for a mammogram and ultrasound at RVH. The radiologist who reviewed my scans was very confident it was cancer and a biopsy was taken a week later. 

Once the results came back and it was determined it was cancer, I started treatment within two weeks of diagnosis. Being able to have all my treatments at RVH meant one less stress for my family and I as we navigated this new normal. When it came time for me to have my unilateral mastectomy, you can imagine how thrilled I was when I found out I was able to have this surgery right here at RVH. Not having to sit in the City traffic after having major surgery was something I am forever grateful for. 

I will continue to have maintenance therapy for the next 10 years which requires monthly visits to RVH. Each visit is roughly a half hour, which makes being able to stay local once again that much more convenient. 

 As I reflect back on the last two years it’s incredible to me that RVH has been right beside me on this journey. From imaging to diagnosis, then treatment (which includes the pharmacy) , surgery and ongoing maintenance. The individuals who make up RVH are the real heroes. The ones who make sure people like me are taken care of with the upmost compassion and respect. Our beautiful community is so fortunate to have this. 

 Thank you RVH for giving me a second chance and the gift of more time.

Most of all thank you for treating me like a person and not just a patient.”

Jennifer Bean – Breast Cancer Warrior

Thanks to the generous support of our community, we have been able to expand our Breast screening equipment and provide biopsy tools as well to our medical team.  Breast surgeon Dr. Yimeng Zhang MD,FRCSC had this to say about RVH;

“We are able to offer patients in our community short wait times for consultations and breast cancer surgeries as part of our new RVH surgical program.  We now perform oncoplastic breast cancer surgeries and seed-guided lumpectomies at RVH, procedures that were previously only offered in Ottawa.  We are grateful that patients are now able to receive the same high quality care close to home, without the need to travel.”  Dr. Yimeng Zhang MD, FRCSC

DID YOU KNOW?

• People in Ontario ages 40 to 74 do not need a referral from a doctor or nurse practitioner to get screened through the program. They can make screening mammogram appointments at any of the more than 240 Ontario Breast Screening Program locations across Ontario. To find contact information, mammogram wait times and hours of operation for the nearest location, visit Ontario Health – Wait Times, or call 1-800-668-9304
• Screening can find breast cancers when they are small, less likely to have spread and more likely to be treated successfully. Partly thanks to screening and early detection, breast cancer has one of the highest survival rates among all cancer types, despite being one of the most common cancers in Ontario.

At RVH we have state-of-the-art equipment and caring and compassionate medical professionals to look after our community Breast Health.

For those of our patients who require a treatment protocol to get them through their cancer journey, RVH offers many of those services right here, close to home.

“As a satellite of the Ottawa Hospital we provide the same high standard of oncology care here at RVH. Treating our patients closer to home makes their journey just a little easier.I take great pride in being a valued resource in our Oncology Unit and in the hospital as a whole. We are deeply committed to the success and well-being of our patients, staff, and wider community. We are fortunate to have such a hospital and community in Renfrew, and I consider it a privilege and a pleasure to work here.”

Elizabeth Stewart, RVH Oncology Nurse

Our RVH Foundation is proud to support the work being done right here at RVH to ensure our community Breast Health is addressed.   Thanks to the success of our Catch the Ace lottery, we purchased the state-of-the-art 3D Tomosynthesis Mammogram machine which is making a difference in the lives of our patients.

Renfrew Victoria Hospital, Saving Lives ONE MAMMOGRAM at a time!