Breast Care Center at Willowbrook
POSITIVELY IN THE
RIGHT PLACE FOR CARE
F
or Tova Parker, mammograms were as routine as eating breakfast, going to work and getting a mani-pedi. Annual mammograms have been part of her routine since she was just 36 years old. Even though she didn’t have any familial high-risk factors, her doctor encouraged starting mammograms early due to other Dr. John Shuck risk factors — including having dense breast tissue and being a Black woman, who are historically underdiagnosed or misdiagnosed for cancer. Since moving from Maryland to the Houston area for work in 2015, she had been going to a breast clinic not affiliated with Houston Methodist. Parker made a habit of scheduling her mammogram to coincide with her birthday month, October, which is also Breast Cancer Dr. Liza Awareness month. In October 2019, she went Thalheimer in for her annual screening and felt something a little off about her right breast. “It was a little heavier, though there were no visible signs of abnormality,” she recalled. She asked the technician to take a closer look, but was told that would require a diagnostic screening, and she’d have to reschedule in a month. Hesitant to delay her annual mammogram, Parker decided to go ahead with the routine screening, which came back clear.
A CHANGE OF PLANS
One month after her mammogram in October, Parker prepared to go back to Maryland for the Thanksgiving holiday that year. And that’s when she felt a small lump in her right breast, the same breast that she had asked the technician to take a closer look at. Instead of calling the breast clinic she had visited, she reached out to her trusted gynecologist, Dr. Lexanne Mauney with Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital, who told her to come in. After examining the breast, Mauney urged Parker to go to the Houston Methodist Breast Care Center at Willowbrook for an ultrasound and diagnostic mammogram. Shortly before the December holidays, Parker received the news that she had stage 3 invasive ductal carcinoma, triple negative breast cancer — a more aggressive cancer that traditionally has a poorer prognosis than other types of breast cancer. Though Parker was obviously upset by the news, when she came to the Breast Care Center, “the whole team surrounded me with compassion,” she said. “They let me know that my
6 LEADING MEDICINE IN NORTHWEST HOUSTON
diagnosis was not a death sentence, and empowered me with resources and information to be active in my medical treatment.”
SECOND OPINION PROVIDES CONFIRMATION
Parker is an engineer, and though she immediately trusted her new team, her analytical mind guided her to seek a second opinion. “This is my life we’re talking about, and I knew that I needed another expert to confirm the diagnosis I received,” Parker remembers. Though they stressed the urgency of starting treatment right away, the doctors supported her and expedited the process. “The second opinion that I received from another wellrespected medical institution was consistent with what I had been told by my Houston Methodist team, from the diagnosis to the treatment plan — everything was identical, but it was the bedside manner of the medical teams that differed significantly,” said Parker. “The feeling was cold. I was in a medical facility, not in a place of caring. Everything was fast, with very little personal interaction.” The second opinion not only confirmed her medical diagnosis, but that she had chosen the right place with Houston Methodist at Willowbrook.
A COMMUNITY OF CARE
Parker expressed gratitude for her comprehensive team, including experts at Houston Methodist Cancer Center at Willowbrook, and how they responded to her approach to cancer. “I’m a positive person, and I need to be with other people who are also positive, to match my energy.” From her first imaging appointment with radiologist Dr. Ainel Sewell and throughout her treatment with all her providers, Parker’s infectious attitude was met with equal enthusiasm. “My infusion team was great,” raved Parker. “I chose to celebrate throughout my healing and not wait until treatment ended. I couldn’t wait until I rang the bell. I danced at every one of my treatments. I danced because of my faith in God and the confidence in my team. I knew that I was already healed.” Her oncologist Dr. Fadi Abu-Shahin got used to taking a selfie with Parker at each appointment for a blog she began writing to document her journey. “At first, writing the blog was cathartic,” recalled Parker, “and then I saw that people were being helped by the positivity, strength, authenticity and humor throughout the blog.” As a result of her blogging, several other breast cancer patients at Houston Methodist have become avid readers and Parker is mentoring a few patients as a result of her writing. To date, the blog has also been featured by several breast cancer support organizations.