Getting to know Dr. Scott Mencken
For Dr. Scott Mencken and his family, helping others and giving back to the community is a way of life. He and his wife have six children ages 18 down to 4. As a family, they recently delivered sandbags and helped families move their belongings to safety during the flooding, as well as served food to children who typically would receive a free lunch at school, but didn’t have that opportunity with school out for several weeks. “This is near and dear to my heart, because when I was young during the summers we never had food for lunch unless it was at the playground, which was provided through similar programs,” he recalled. Growing up with a single mother and two brothers in the Charleston area, money was tight. While his mother was in nursing school, the family lived on food stamps for a while. This experience, he said, makes him appreciate the struggles other families deal with today. “My family always tries to help others,” he said.
As a teenager, he had many jobs including bus-boy, grocery bagger, and auto mechanic. Believe it or not, it was that last job that led to him becoming a radiologist. While working another job as a file clerk in the radiology department at the Medical University in Charleston, he decided on that new career path. “This decision was made when a transmission fell right next to my head while working in the auto shop. It almost crushed my head. I call it an epiphany,” he explained. Completing medical school and his residency in Charleston and his fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh, he specializes in vascular and interventional radiology procedures including treatment of peripheral vascular disease, helping dialysis patients with their dialysis access, and performing biopsies. He has a special interest in mammography, the screening and diagnosis of breast cancer. He says the most rewarding part of his medical career is “meeting patients who have discovered breast cancer earlier and see that they have survived with therapy.” As a radiologist with Carolina Radiology Associates, he works in Conway Medical Center’s Outpatient Diagnostic Center where the mammography program is the first in the state to have the SmartCurve technology to provide a more comfortable mammogram. CMC also offers 3D mammography. Dr. Mencken has been an advocate in helping CMC obtain and plan for a 3D mobile mammography unit.
Dr. Mencken’s hobbies include relaxing on the beach and traveling. His family has been to several of the Caribbean islands and to Europe multiple times. When they go, they take the entire family and “share our adventures with them, creating priceless family memories. Our goal Is to let them experience as much of the world as possible so that they will continue to appreciate every day.” And Dr. Mencken certainly appreciates his wife, saying “Renee manages our household and family and makes it look easy. I’m not sure how she does everything she does.” He typically works from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. at the hospital and shares responsibility for being on-call for procedures and at night. When asked about retirement he declared, “I haven’t even thought about it. I am 51 with a four-year-old and six college tuitions to pay for. I likely will be working for many more years.”
