'I just feel that something's not right'
SPRINGFIELD, Ore. -- Chandra Wilcox said she found them during a health exam.
"There's a few of them. Like, three. A cluster of them," said Wilcox.
She said she has been worrying about them for six months.
"Talking to my doctor, and she's like 'you need to get it taken care of now, that's serious,' and it runs in my family."
And she doesn't know where to turn to find out what the lumps are in her breast.
"I just feel that something's not right," said Wilcox. She said she's called clinic after clinic, looking for ways to get a free mammogram because she's uninsured. But she said she's been turned away 20 times because she's 31 years old, and many programs don't offer free services to women younger than 40.
"I've tried everything, and everywhere I go, it's just a big circle and it gets me back to where I started," said Wilcox.
So where can younger women turn? The Breast and Cervical Cancer Program (BCCP) through the state offers free mammograms but only if patients meet certain guidelines, like having a persistent mass during two clinical breast exams at least a menstrual cycle apart.
Planned Parenthood offers low-cost clinical breast exams, and Sarah Moseley with Planned Parenthood of SW Oregon said free exams will likely be available soon.
Even though it's already taken six months, Wilcox said getting peace of mind is worth jumping through the hoops.
"If there's nothing wrong, that's great. If there is something wrong, just get it taken care of...so I don't have to have it on my mind anymore," said Wilcox.
