After a series of "fortunate events," Waltham resident Edie Constantine considers herself lucky to be alive.
As an administrative employee at Mass. General Hospital, Constantine was passing through the building's main corridor on Feb. 13, when she stopped to say hello to a friend who was participating in a free, five-minute carotid artery screening.
Constantine, 57, sat down and and got also got a screening.
Within five minutes, she received life-saving information.
Constantine, who was planning to marry her husband, William, the following day, learned her right carotid artery was over 90 percent blocked, putting her at an extremely high risk for a deadly stroke.
Free of needles, blood or pain, the test uses a simple ultrasound machine to determine how smoothly blood is flowing through the arteries in one's neck.
"Had I not known about this, I could of just dropped dead," said Constantine. "To me it was a very fortunate stop."
Constantine was immediately brought into the hospital's vascular center to meet with a doctor who scheduled her corrective surgery for the following week.
"She was in significant danger because she had absolutely no idea," said Dr. Michael Jaff, medical director of the vascular center at Mass. General Hospital.
Now, as Stroke Awareness Month comes to an end, Constantine is sharing her story with others.
Strokes are the third leading cause of death overall in the United States, according to statistics compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Blocked carotid arteries are the leading cause of strokes.
"I pretty much have a healthy lifestyle," said Constantine, who described herself as an active non-smoker. "My mother actually died from this ... but because she was a smoker I felt I wasn't at risk."
After her small wedding at City Hall on a Thursday, Constantine returned to the hospital the following Tuesday to meet with doctor's for a pre-operational consult.
Once again, Constantine was in the right place at the right time.
While sitting in her appointment, Constantine began experiencing symptoms of a stroke. With blurred vision and numbness, she was rushed into surgery, where the blockage was removed.
"In that time period ... she had a minor stroke," said Jaff.
Now, Constantine is enjoying her life and has returned to doing the things she loves. Since her surgery, she has started a regime of aspirin and Lipitor - a cholesterol lowering drug shown to decrease the chances of a second stroke.
There are five main factors that are linked to carotid arteries and stroke, only one of which is out of a person's control, said Jaff.
Although a person cannot change their DNA makeup, simple steps, such as diet and exercise, can be shown to lower one's risk for a stroke by preventing high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes, Jaff said.
"The truth of the matter is if you cut back on the amount of saturated fat that you eat, and walk, just walk, you will live longer," he said. "Take a walk every day."
The biggest risk factor, said Jaff, is cigarette smoking.
"If you stop smoking you can actually lower your risk to a level as if you never started smoking," he said.
Both Constantine and Jaff are quick to recognize her luck that day.
"I was one out of 75 people that were (found to have blocked arteries)," said Constantine. "To me it was just a very fortunate stop. It was the shock of my life."
Now, Constantine said she wants others to take advantage of the free screenings Mass. General and other hospitals offer sporadically throughout the year.
"I would say to take the five minutes," said Constantine. "When you think of the five minutes that could save your life ... I'd say it's well worth the five minutes."
Kerri Roche can be reached at kroche@cnc.com or 781-398-8009.
