Sharon Hosak Believes Mammograms are Lifesavers


Tallapoosa resident, Sharon Hosak, was still in high school when she found the first lump in her breast at age 17. “I had been swimming, and I felt the lump as I was pulling up my bathing suit,” Sharon says. Fortunately, the lump was fibrocystic and was not cancerous.

After that early scare in her life, Sharon has been careful to do monthly self-exams to detect any lumps in her breasts. She had already learned that early detection of breast cancer was very important. Not until she was 40 years old did she discover another lump during a self-exam. She went to the Haralson County Health Department, because she didn’t have health insurance. “There was a state program that paid for my mammogram and surgery. I had a diagnostic mammogram in Carrollton, and I had surgery at Higgins General Hospital,” Sharon says. Once again, the lump was fibrocystic instead of cancer.

The third scare came just two years later. Sharon was preparing for surgery to remove her ovaries when a mammogram revealed a very small lump that could not be felt. A biopsy revealed that this one was actually cancerous. “I was told that it was an infectious, fast-growing cancer. If it hadn’t been discovered early, it could have been too late by the time I felt the lump,” Sharon says. She quickly had surgery to remove the lump.

Because of her multiple experiences with breast lumps, both fibrocystic and cancerous, Sharon has become a huge proponent for mammography and self-exams. “Early detection is so important,” she says. “Because a mammogram is non-invasive and so simple to do, there is no excuse for not having these tests. Some women talk about not being able to afford a mammogram or about being afraid to have one, but they should be thinking about the risk and the expense of having breast cancer.”

An employee of Wear Me Again consignment shop in Bremen, Sharon is excited about the store’s participation in Tanner Medical Foundation’s program, “Merchants Making a Difference.” During “Breast Cancer Awareness Month” in October, Wear Me Again is joining over 50 other businesses in Bremen and Villa Rica to help promote the early detection of breast cancer. Their customers will have an opportunity to make a donation to support a fund to provide screening mammograms for women who cannot afford them. “Most of our customers are women,” Sharon says. “It’s a small store and most people talk while they shop. We think this will be a good opportunity to spread the word about early detection right here in Bremen.”

Since there is a history of cancer in her family, Sharon keeps a close watch and knows she’s at a higher risk for cancer herself. Her mother is a six-year survivor of ovarian cancer. Her aunt passed away a year ago with breast cancer. And Sharon’s daughter has already had a fibrocystic lump removed at age 21. “Every time I go for a mammogram, I really hold my breath,” Sharon says. “I have a great fear of breast cancer. But, breast cancer should not kill. Mammograms and early detection are the keys to survival. Being afraid or not being able to afford it is not a good excuse. In fact, I believe there are no good excuses for avoiding a mammogram,” she concludes.

For more information about the 2007 “Merchants Making a Difference” program, contact Tanner Medical Foundation at 770.836.9871.