Albury woman Rosamund Jarvie was among the inaugural group of students who trained in mammography through Charles Sturt University, and five years on she's teaching others.
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There are now 31 people working in BreastScreen Australia and private facilities after completing the Graduate Diploma in Mammography.
Mrs Jarvie grew up in Cootamundra and moved to Albury from Port Macquarie in 2012, gaining work with Border Pathology.
"I had always worked in pathology, after doing a Bachelor of Medical Science in 2004," she said.
"I loved working for Border Pathology but unfortunately it closed, and I wanted to keep working in a medical job.
"I was looking for a career change that would complement my skills and knowledge base.
"I had just finished investigating doing radiography when a nurse told me about this new mammography course."
Mrs Jarvie finished her year-long Diploma in 2015 and gained work with BreastScreen.
Based at Albury and travelling across the Murrumbidgee Local Health District, she can be in the mobile screening van for weeks at a time.
"If you're passionate about women's health, it's a lovely way to meet lots of women every day, and you see their gratitude," Mrs Jarvie said.
"The country ladies love having you come because it means they don't have to travel, and they sit in the van having a chat - you feel like you should be handing out tea and scones.
"You know how much you're appreciated."
Because BreastScreen NSW has temporarily suspended routine breast screening to limit the transmission of COVID-19, Mrs Jarvie has been redeployed.
Women are encouraged to contact their doctor if they notice a breast change.
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Mrs Jarvie was seeing up to 33 clients a day on screening days and up to 15 clients a day on assessment clinic days - where women are called back after a mammogram.
"When we do the assessment clinics, sometimes the women can be concerned and you try to make everything as clear to them as possible," she said.
"You try to make them comfortable, and you meet women from all walks of life.
"In some ways I've come full circle; I was previously in anatomical pathology, so we did a lot of testing for BreastScreen.
"Performing a service that is integral in the early detection of breast cancer and therefore reducing the morbidity and mortality is the most rewarding part of my job.
"I couldn't have been happier with the choice I made."
