Utmost confidence in her local ‘team’
Lew Ann Giles of Dundee has a lifelong, unique connection with Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hospital. She was delivered there by Dr. Richard Harpending, two months premature and weighing only 2lbs 12 oz. There was no neonatal unit at the hospital then, so she was placed far from the viewing window and her parents were not allowed to hold her, should she not survive. She defied the odds and thrived. Many years later, just prior to her wedding, she visited Dr. Harpending and he was brought to tears at the course of her life after such a fragile start.
In May 2018, Lew Ann got a routine mammogram at Soldiers & Sailors. As she has dense breasts, she is often called back for a recheck, but this call back was different. Dr. Mooney consulted and suggested Lew Ann have a biopsy and thus began Lew Ann’s most recent journey with her trusted, local health care system and staff.
In the weeks that followed, Lew Ann was an inquisitive and active participant in her medical procedures. She was fascinated by what she saw and learned, viewing the process as an educational opportunity, asking many questions, and involving friends, family and health professionals as supporters and partners in her journey.
She felt empowered by knowledge and had the utmost confidence in her local ‘team,’ which included Mary Ann Walton, Diagnostic Imaging Site Supervisor at Soldiers & Sailors; Lisa Davis, Women’s Health Services Coordinator at Geneva General Hospital and Dr. Kristin Baltazar-Ford, who performed surgery on Lew Ann in Geneva a month later.
Lew Ann is a Lay Minister through the Dundee Baptist Church. With the support and encouragement of Dr. Baltazar-Ford to, “Go out and live your life!” Lew Ann was able to honor her commitment to officiate at four weddings during the month of June.
Lew Ann is committed to inspiring others to take control of their health. She says, “Don’t duck and run…go get a mammogram!” Adding, “Not all cancers begin with a capital ‘C’. A diagnosis of cancer is not always a death sentence.” She is thrilled that the Finger Lakes Health system is bringing 3D Mammography to Geneva General Hospital and Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hospital, as this is the standard of care for breast cancer screening, and as Lew Ann says, “The best protection is early detection.”