A woman who has been diagnosed with breast cancer is claiming she was "violated" and "horrified" after being screened during a body cavity search at Los Angeles International Airport.
WCBS reported that Denise Albert said in a Facebook post Monday that she was retained by Transportation Security Administration officers because she had a metal port that set off sensors and a medically necessary cream for her treatment.
WNYW reported that Albert, a co-host of a SiriusXM Radio show called "The Moms," can be seen on a video recorded by her business partner and posted to her Facebook page Sunday visibly upset as she is searched by a female officer. As the officer moves toward Albert's chest after examining her leg, Albert says firmly, "You can't touch me there. You can't touch me there. Sorry."
A male officer intervenes and Albert tells him, "I have breast cancer. I had a lumpectomy. I have a port in me. You can't touch me there."
The man explains that the other officer would only use as much pressure as necessary on her and that she would only use the back of her hands to do so.
"That is part of the procedure. We have to clear everything," he said. "Either you can have her do it or you can get a female supervisor to do it, but we have to clear the area."
According to Albert, she was also forcibly handled all over her body.
"They … started to tell me they would apply pressure from head to toe and I got very upset because I wear a wig," Albert wrote. "I didn't want them to touch it, move it, or ruin it, so I ripped it off for them to pat my head without damaging my wig."
"I have never been so humiliated or felt more violated in my life," she said.
"TSA is currently looking into the specific details as to what occurred during the screening process to ensure our security protocols were followed," the TSA said in a statement. "We regret any distress the security screening process may have caused the passenger. We will work with the passenger directly to address her concerns"
In a post update on her Facebook page Tuesday, Albert said a TSA official called her and she was "very pleased" with the conversation.
"They apologized for my experience, and at this point there is an LAX investigation into what happened," she wrote. "They very aggressively train their agents on how to screen medical / disabilities. This was not at their expectations and a lot of disappointment they didn't get it right. They are going to refresh training at LAX."
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