Breast cancer patient says she had to lie to get a mammogram in Ontario

When an Ontario doctor refused to sign off on a mammogram for 38-year-old Sidra Lone, the mother of four says she was left with no choice but to lie.

When an Ontario doctor refused to sign off on a mammogram for 38-year-old Sidra Lone, the mother of four says she was left with no choice but to lie.

“The doctor, she asked me, ‘Do you have a family history’ (of breast cancer)?’ I lied to her and said I do, ‘my two aunts have breast cancer.’”

That lie finally led to a mammogram and a shocking diagnosis in February.

Speaking to CTV News from her home in Oshawa, Ont., Lone shared that “the subtype (of breast cancer) I have is triple negative, it’s the aggressive type of breast cancer. When my oncologist heard my story she said to me, ‘You just saved your own life do you know that?’”

Next week, Ontario will join BC, Saskatchewan, and Atlantic Canada in granting women as young as 40 a mammogram if they request one. In Alberta and Manitoba, the minimum age is 45. Quebec is currently reviewing its policy.

But at 38, Lone wouldn't have qualified anywhere in the country for a mammogram. Before she was diagnosed with stage two breast cancer, Lone didn’t have any symptoms. A physical inspection by a doctor revealed nothing.

In her personal and professional life as an educational assistant, Lone says she kept meeting younger and younger women who had breast cancer. Something inside of her was pushing her to go back to the doctor to get checked, she said.