From Mammogram to Recovery: How Integrative Oncology Supported Michelle’s Care

A routine mammogram in October 2024 showed Michelle A. had early-stage breast cancer.

The mammogram, it turns out, was crucial because Michelle’s tumor was too small to detect from a self-exam.

“It's so important for women to get their regularly scheduled mammograms and do their self-exams, too,” Michelle, 63, said. “If I had not had my mammogram, I wouldn't have found it.”

As part of her cancer treatment at Ochsner MD Anderson Cancer Center in Baton Rouge, Michelle participated in Ochsner’s integrative oncology program.

Her oncologist, Jay Brooks, MD, helped Michelle get involved in the program.

With integrative oncology, "we're not just treating cancer, we're treating the person,” Dr. Brooks said. “We're trying to make the person whole and get rid of the cancer in the process."

Integrative oncology includes programs like art therapy and yoga, and treatments like acupuncture and counseling. Ochsner’s program is designed to help patients manage their symptoms and side effects from treatments while also helping them develop a healthier lifestyle. The goal is to help patients feel their best throughout treatment.

Michelle saw an occupational therapist before her surgery, got hands-on support for lymphatic drainage and scar tissue management and even tried acupuncture.

"Having access to acupuncture … I never even thought about it as an option," she says. "That has been a blessing."

While Michelle said her diagnosis “wasn't a life and death situation,” she said it was something that was always on her mind.

What she learned from integrative oncology, alongside physical healing, was perspective. 

“I think I learned that I need to take time,” she said. “That life is more than just work and that my value is more than just my professional value.”

Learn more about integrative oncology at Ochsner.

Learn more about breast cancer screenings at Ochsner.