Diagnosed yesterday

Cames

I am so glad I found this site. My journey began 4 weeks ago with a callback from my yearly mammogram. That appointment involved 4 rounds of X-rays, an ultrasound, then a live ultrasound with the radiologist present. I walked out of the office with an appointment card to seen a surgeon. Fast forward one MRI and 2 sterotactic biopsys later I get the call from the surgeon (who happens to be on vacation) and he informed me the micro calcifications were cancerous and another biopsy area were pre-cancerous. I should note that there were a total of 4 questionable areas of micro calcifications. That's pretty much all I remembered of that conversation. I have an appointment beginning of next week to discuss what is going on, but all I know now is that I am afraid and and very confused right now. Any insight or advise would be greatly appreciated. Thank you

Moderators

Hi Cames,

We're so sorry you have to be here, but really glad you found us, too! You're sure to get great support from our many wonderful members.

We know it's all very confusing right now, especially with not a lot of info in hand. But, when you learn more, please come back here and ask questions -- we're all here to help!

Looking forward to hearing more from you and supporting you through this!

--The Mods

JACTsMom

I'm very sorry for what you're going through and I'm right there with you. I can't offer much advice as I'm still trying to understand it all myself but I can support you. This is a great site. Sorry you're here/glad you're here.

vbishop

Hi ladies -

Sorry you are here, but happy you found this place.  Lots of advice and support from those that have been there/done that.

The time from diagnosis to actually starting treatment is probably the toughest; the unknown, tests and more tests, see this doctor, then that doctor, etc.  A necessary rollercoaster ride.  Time from diagnosis to treatment can vary, but in reading the boards and talking to friends, 4 weeks is probably close to the norm...but everyone is different.

Some strategies to get you through the next few weeks:

• Take someone with you to take notes when you go to the initial doctor appointments.  When your name is associated with cancer, sometimes you only hear a smidgen of what the doctor is saying before you just shut down.  Recording the meeting is also a good idea.
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• I was told to get a planner to keep track of appointments.  WTH?  A planner?  It helps....keep your team's phone numbers all in one place, a calendar with appointments, and possibly a place to keep lab results, pathology reports, etc.
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• Don't borrow trouble; go with what you know.  This is a scary time for you and everyone around you.  Although you don't know much now, you will learn more with every test, every doctor's appointment.  Don't read the stuff on the internet and assume it pertains to you.  Nine times out of ten, it doesn't.  And all you end of doing is freaking yourself out and going to a very dark and scary place.  So....always stay in the here and now, hang on to what you know to be true and don't worry about the unknowns. 
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• Things WILL calm down and you will feel less anxious, less scared as your medical team is solidly in place and treatment begins.  Know that there are many here that can offer advice, a safe place to break down, and lots of cyber hugs!  It does get better. 

Do not hesitate to reach out to women on these boards.  We're all here to help!

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msphil

hello sweetie so sorry u had to be here but we here know your feelings been there as soon as u get more info and treatment plan in place things wont be so overwhelming we are here for you . msphil(idc stage2, Lmast, chemo 3 mo before and 3 mo after rads and 5 yrs on tamoxifen).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cames

Thank you for all your encouragement.. I see the Dr. On Monday and Ive decided to make every effort to focus on how awsome my life truly is.. God has blessed me beyond what I deserve and therefore I have so much to be thankful for!

ChiSandy

Keep a notebook. Throughout your treatment you will be buried in documents: appointment reminders, insurance stuff, correspondence, after-visit summaries, informational handouts, resource lists, prescriptions (photocopy them if you can't fill them by fax), and receipts. There are two ways to do this. My friend who was recently diagnosed keeps looseleaf notebooks filled with plastic page protectors into which she slips paperwork, etc. (She's done this with photos from vacations, certificates & keepsakes too). When my mom began her final illness (COPD+CHF) while on vacation in VA, my sister kept just such a notebook and my mom handed it off to me when I met her at the airport in FL to bring her home. She kept it up through her last night on earth, at 85-1/2.

What I do is a tad different. Rather than ring binders, I've been a longtime fan of the Levenger Circa system (Staples has an identical and interchangeable but far cheaper system--which you don't have to order online if you have a Staples near you--called Arc). It fundamentally consists of specially-punched paper (you can buy an inexpensive Circa/Arc punch for any documents you get), interchangeable covers (plastic, paper, even leather or pleather), and plastic disks of various diameters which act as rings. You can add dividers (plain and pocketed), rulers, smaller notes, even a little zippered pouch, which I use for parking receipts and discount coupons. The beauty of this system is that with one set of covers, dividers and 2" rings you can assemble a master notebook; with another set of covers and smaller rings you can assemble a smaller subnotebook you can take with you to various appointments--all you have to do is remove that section from the master notebook simply by pulling it off the larger disks and pressing it onto the smaller ones. No opening or closing rings (no pinched fingers); the notebook folds completely and needn't be opened flat--no need to move sections around to have enough space to insert stuff. And if you exceed the capacity of the master notebook, just start another. I made a “Radiation" notebook--by removing that section and putting it on 1/2" rings and between a set of covers--I brought to visits with my RO, simulations, and treatments. Afterwards, I put it back into the master notebook. The other day I removed the “Oncology" section, put into a 1/2" notebook, and took it to my MO appt. Hadn't expected to get lymphedema, but I'm creating a “LE" section for the exercise and treatment handouts to take with me to my LE PT. Each section has some blank sheets of lined paper for taking notes and logging symptoms, etc. In the front of the master notebook is my journal.

Sounds anal-retentive? Of course. But it also keeps my hands occupied and my mind focused on my progress rather than in panicked “What next?" and “What if?" mode. And of course, you know where EVERYTHING is when you need it, especially at tax or reimbursement time.

Moderators

Cames -- just checking in to see how your appointment went yesterday. Was your doctor able to give you some clarity and answer your questions?

Please keep us all posted on how you're doing!

--The Mods