“Everybody was so amazing, so fantastic,” says Marianna. “Steeplechase is the place to go.”
Marianna S., a retired nurse from Monroe, has a message for women during Breast Cancer Awareness Month: “Mammograms save lives.”
A cervical cancer survivor, the 70-year-old mother of three was especially diligent in getting her annual mammogram, knowing the importance of early detection.
If she hadn’t gone for her annual mammogram in April, she would not have known that she had a 10-millimeter lump in her right breast.
“It was so small and so deep that I couldn’t feel it,” Marianna says.
A biopsy at the Steeplechase Cancer Center at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) Somerset a week later confirmed it was ductal invasive carcinoma.
Marianna underwent a mastectomy and breast reconstruction surgery at the hospital in June and completed a week of radiation treatment there in August.
“Now I’m cancer free,” she says.
Enjoying going on walks, reading and spending time with her grandson, Marianna is grateful to her caregivers at the Steeplechase Cancer Center for helping her beat breast cancer.
Her care team included medical oncologist Kathleen Toomey, MD, breast surgeon Deborah Lue, MD, plastic surgeon Colin Failey, MD and radiation oncologist Gopal Desai, MD.
Guiding her throughout her cancer journey was Christina Lackey, MSN, RN, CHPN, OCN, clinical nurse navigator at the Steeplechase Cancer Center, who helped Marianna schedule appointments, answered her questions and referred her to resources such as the cancer center’s survivorship program.
“Everybody was so amazing, so fantastic,” says Marianna. “Steeplechase is the place to go.”
Together with Rutgers Cancer Institute, the state’s only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, RWJUH Somerset’s Steeplechase Cancer Center provides Central New Jersey women access to world-class cancer care including clinical trials, immunotherapy, and precision medicine, close to home.
No prescription is needed for a screening mammogram at the hospital’s Sanofi US Breast Care Program. Appointments can be scheduled online through the MyChart patient portal at www.rwjbh.org/mychart or by calling 908-704-3740. Walk-ins are also accepted. Evening and Saturday appointments are available.