Meg Crowther, 70, of Barrington, has always been good about conducting monthly breast self-examinations. And in February 2024, she noticed a change in her breast tissue.
“It wasn’t something I could define as a lump, but it was definitely a change,” Crowther said. She contacted her doctor, Julie Springer, MD, an obstetrician-gynecologist with Endeavor Health, and scheduled a mammogram.
The results of the mammogram came back normal, which did not sit right with Crowther or Dr. Springer. “Because I have dense breast tissue, Dr. Springer suggested that we do an ultrasound,” said Crowther.
Crowther was screened via automated whole-breast ultrasound (ABUS), which can detect small cancers sometimes missed on mammograms in women with dense breast tissue.
“Nearly 50% of women have dense breast tissue, which increases their risk of developing breast cancer,” explained Allyson Jacobson, MD, a breast surgery specialist with Endeavor Health. “ABUS is a secondary screening modality that can detect cancer in dense breasts when mammograms cannot.”
The ABUS returned an abnormal result, and after a biopsy, Crowther was diagnosed with breast cancer.
“Less than an hour after receiving the diagnosis, I got a call from my new best friend, Tracey Martin, RN, nurse navigator at Endeavor Health Northwest Community Hospital (NCH),” said Crowther. “Every step of this journey, Tracey presented my options and told me, ‘You’re the boss’, which is very empowering.”
She was scheduled just a few days later to meet with her multidisciplinary team of doctors at the Endeavor Health NCH High Risk Breast Clinic in Arlington Heights.
At the Breast Clinic, Crowther and her husband, Bruce, met with most of her care team, which included Dr. Jacobson; radiation oncologist Stephen Nigh, MD; physical therapist Amy Miller, PT; and outpatient oncology social worker Kim Jensen, LCSW, OSW-C. A few days later, she met with medical oncologist Urszula Sobol, MD.
“We got so many of our questions answered,” said Crowther. “Everyone we crossed paths with has been so kind, compassionate and communicative. Working with Endeavor Health felt like coming home.”
Unfortunately, additional screening found a second kind of breast cancer, also in her right breast.
“Because we found a second, entirely different kind of cancer in a separate location in her breast, she was no longer eligible for a lumpectomy,” explained Dr. Jacobson. “We discussed her options and she decided to move forward with a right breast mastectomy.”
Crowther underwent a right breast mastectomy in July 2024 and immediately began physical therapy to help her heal and regain her range of motion. She began four rounds of chemotherapy in September and will receive routine screening mammograms and ultrasounds annually for her left breast.
Crowther said it’s important for women to regularly conduct breast self-exams.
“I feel very lucky to have caught it early because of Dr. Springer's attentiveness and my own advocacy,” she said. “Nobody knows your body like you know your body.”
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