HAMPTON, Va. — News 3 is getting an update to a story we brought you about a Hampton Roads U.S. Army veteran who had a mammogram appointment at the Hampton VA Medical Center canceled amid cuts to the Department of Veterans Affairs.
After our story aired, Valerie Jackson was able to get her mammogram, which led to another appointment. After getting the results from that appointment, she reached back out to News 3 to tell us what the doctor found.
Watch: Veteran says her mammogram was canceled due to VA staffing shortage following layoffs
“Honestly, I feel relief," Jackson said about getting the results from her appointment.
Jackson was staying positive despite being told she has some cysts in her right breast.
"At least I know what I have to move towards," said Jackson.
Watch: Newport News radiologist suggests Black women begin mammograms at 35 due to risk
When News 3 interviewed Jackson in February, she didn’t know she had cysts. She said she has a history of cancer in her family, which is why she really wanted to get her scheduled mammogram.
“I have to get this done every year," Jackson emphasized during the February interview.
She said after the mammogram, a radiologist at the VA recommended she get an MRI. She did, and that’s when the cysts were discovered.
Watch: After rare breast cancer diagnosis, Chesapeake woman wants to help others
“Honestly, because of you all, I wouldn’t have even found any of this out until June," Jackson said.
As News 3 reported in February, Jackson said when her VA mammogram appointment was canceled, she was told that June was the earliest the center could schedule her a mammogram elsewhere.
Coincidentally, the doctor who discovered the cysts is the same doctor News 3 interviewed in February 2024 about using artificial intelligence to scan mammogram results for possible signs of cancer that might otherwise be missed.
Watch: WTKR engineer looks to AI technology to screen lump for breast cancer
In that story, with permission from a patient, Dr. Benjamin Pettus showed News 3 the results of using AI to scan the patient’s mammogram.
“It’s giving this particular lesion an intermediate score, which means it’s not an overly suspicious look to the AI but it’s concerned about something. That’s helpful information to me because, again, this patient has multiple cysts everywhere," Pettus told News 3 in the February 2024 story.
As of Wednesday, Jackson was planning to have surgery to remove her cysts.
Watch: Woman diagnosed with breast cancer while pregnant becomes an advocate
She said the VA has, in her words, set her up for success. However, with more Department of Veterans Affairs cuts possible later this year, she’s still concerned about the future of her health care.
“I know that right now, I will be able to process through what’s going on with me. But in the future, I don’t know what’s going to happen," said Jackson.
She encourages everyone to stand up for their health care.
“The one thing that I’ve always said — not only to myself but to my daughters and my sons — is that you have to be your own best advocate. If you feel something isn't quite right, then you have to fight for yourself," she said.
