About two months ago during a visit to her doctor, Amber Delventhal was told she was at a higher risk of developing cervical cancer. Her doctor quickly referred her to the High Risk Breast Cancer Clinic at Alamance Regional Medical Center, a new initiative by Cone Health that has taken off this year.
“I went to my OB/GYN, and they had mentioned that I was at a higher risk for cervical cancer, so that’s when she opened up other options,” Delventhal said. “It’s just been a smooth ride ever since.”
Sheena Lambert, a nurse navigator at the clinic, said a high-risk clinic has been in the works for years but has been a primary goal for 2020.
“We’ve kind of talked about a high risk clinic since 2014 (when the new Cancer Center at ARMC opened) and we’ve kind of done a little here and there,” Lambert said.
As the clinic has come together, Lambert explained it serves as a medical management strategy for women at increased risk of cancers.
“The goal is to identify women who would be at high risk for developing breast cancer and get them the appropriate medical management,” she said. “Early detection is your best protection.”
Delventhal said she already knew she might be at higher risk, due to a family history of cervical cancer. According to Lambert, family history is one of several factors used to determine a woman’s risk level.
“Knowing your family history is extremely important,” Lambert said. “Family history can be a big indicator.”
Lambert said medical providers can also conduct risk analyses on patients that factor in that family history, age, history of radiation treatments, age of menses, weight and more to determine breast cancer risk levels.
“There are different models out there to look at, so doctors might be looking at that and we look at those,” she explained.
If a woman is determined to be at high risk, like Delventhal was, clinic patients are referred to a medical oncologist who will re-evaluate the risk level, determine if the patient is a good candidate for genetic testing, make those referrals if necessary, or refer patients for additional imaging, biopsies or other management strategies.
“What the high risk clinic does is it really helps set up a medical management plan for you,” Lambert said. “Hopefully we can either detect a cancer earlier because you’re getting screened earlier or you know that you may or may not have a genetic mutation.”
“It really is beneficial for that patient and for their primary care doctor to know how do we take care of these women better? I think that’s a big goal,” she added.
When Delventhal started working with the clinic, a biopsy was ordered, followed by a LEEP procedure, which uses a laser to remove abnormal cells.
“I love the program. It’s very quick, very easy,” Delventhal said. “I thought it would take a lot longer, but it didn’t. It was back to back appointments and they were really quick.”
As Delventhal and her providers await the results of the LEEP, they have already begun discussing next steps, which will include mammograms when she is no longer nursing one of her children.
“I have two kids, so I’m definitely excited to know that I have my options and that I’m being taken care of,” Delventhal said.
Lambert said at this point patients need a referral from their provider to start working with the high risk clinic.
“Wherever they get identified, they can get referred from,” Lambert said.
This year, and especially this month during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Lambert said the clinic is working hard to expand the resources available through the clinic.
“Let’s get this up and going. Let’s really work on helping identify those women in the community that are high risk and get them into the clinic and get them medically managed appropriately,” Lambert said.
