Hello All
I now have 27 hours to my hospital appointment in which I am going to know the result of the biopsy and get a treatment plan
please can anybody tell me who is normally in this meeting? Is the surgeon there? Who else ? and how long it is? Do have the opportunity to ask lots of questions ?
The closer we get to the session the more nervous I feel
Thank you
Hi Nazly
I’m sorry you’re in this position but you will get through it all. The impression I have is that people build things up in their minds and get very anxious, only to find they worried for nothing.
Your breast consultant should be present, along with a breast care nurse who you can talk to afterwards. You should be able to take someone in with you and I would strongly advise this. First for moral support, obviously, but also to take notes because, believe me, it will be in one ear and out the other no matter how hard you concentrate (shock at work). If your biopsy indicates it, you may be referred to an oncologist or to the breast surgeon for your next treatment plan but, at this stage, you don’t know what the results are. I do hope they are good.
If you are referred to the breast surgeon, it will be to discuss what form surgery will take. There are many options and you need to think about them. The breast surgeon will give you the pros and cons of each. Assuming you do have cancer, you may be offered the choice of a lumpectomy with further treatment, a mastectomy with no or with further treatment, a reconstruction - it’s a lot to take in. My advice would be to trust the breast surgeon. It will then be up to her/him to secure clear margins (proof that the cells haven’t spread far) after which you get another treatment plan.
Some hospitals do it the other way round and you are referred for chemotherapy to shrink the tumour before you have surgery. I think it may depend on how advanced the tumour is (stage 3) and what type of cancer you have, hormone positive or negative. Positive is definitely better. Sadly, I had 2 lumps, one of each.
This brings me to the important question - how much do you need to know? Some people need to know every detail to feel they are in charge of their treatment, others (myself included) prefer to play ostrich and just let the team get on with it. If you are prone to anxiety, stick with the minimum information and PLEASE do not Google. There is so much information out there, most of it irrelevant to your unique diagnosis, a lot out of date, it’s a minefield. It also has no consideration for your emotions! Also think very carefully about whether you need/want to know your prognosis, especially if your cancer is already advanced. Focus on getting better and living a good life, rather than worrying about outdated statistics that ultimately are meaningless.
So, I’m sorry to say it’s not a neat and tidy progression. You may need a bone scan, a CT scan, an MRI - all dependent on what they have found so far and nothing sinister implied if you have one rather than another or even have all 3. They reveal essential information and can confirm things haven’t spread. You may meet one consultant and then be referred onto another… There is a LOT of waiting and potentially painful anticipation involved now, depending on how complex your case may be. Right now, think about the questions you want answers to and make sure your ‘companion’ is armed with them. If you can, give them permission to speak or to prompt you when you get to the ‘Have you any further questions?’ Also, work on building up resilience and a sound escape from anxiety - mindfulness, meditation, running - whatever suits you. I still plug in daily to YouTube videos by Progressive Hypnosis - they got me through everything and still do.
Sorry for the lengthy response. Yours may be a simple case or a complex case so I’ve tried to cover all bases. The important thing is to accept that there must be a lot of waiting and you may get referred and referred again. There is a multi-disciplinary team (MDT) behind the scenes, making sure that your treatment is tailored to your cancer. Learn to manage the waiting without too much anxiety if you can.
I wish you all the best for the simplest diagnosis and treatment plan,
Jan x