High Point couple urges early screening after both diagnosed with breast cancer

Steve and Mitzi Ellis have spent 51 years together, raised two daughters in Greensboro and, at different times, faced the same disease. Mitzi was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2009, then again in 2013 after thinking treatment had worked. Steve’s turn came in 2016, when a lump on his left breast led to a doctor’s order for a mammogram and a breast cancer diagnosis. Their message now is blunt: “Early detection saved our lives.”

That lesson has a local address. Guilford County residents can get screening mammograms at Cone Health Imaging at MedCenter High Point, 2630 Willard Dairy Road, Suite A, and at The Breast Center of Greensboro Imaging, 1002 N. Church St. Cone Health says screening mammograms can find breast cancer before symptoms develop, and its High Point location can be reached at 336-884-3600. Residents who need a starting point for care can also contact Guilford County Division of Public Health adult services at 501 East Green Drive in High Point, 336-641-3245, which serves uninsured and underinsured low-income residents.

Families should not wait for a crisis to notice changes. The American Cancer Society says the most common sign of breast cancer is a new lump or mass, but swelling, skin dimpling, nipple retraction, nipple pain, redness, flaking, thickening, nipple discharge and swollen lymph nodes under the arm or near the collarbone can also signal trouble. It adds that mammograms do not find every cancer, so any new breast change should be checked promptly.

Steve’s diagnosis is also a reminder that breast cancer is not only a women’s disease. In men, the most common symptom is a lump in the breast, often under or near the nipple or areola, and other warning signs can include skin dimpling or puckering, nipple retraction, redness or scaling and discharge. The American Cancer Society and CDC both note that family history matters too, including breast cancer in close relatives and a male relative with breast cancer, which can affect screening and genetic counseling decisions. For the Ellis family, that is the practical takeaway: know the signs, know the family history and do not wait to get checked.