Mom diagnosed yesterday and very worried

jg1990

My mom had a mammogram last week, which led to a finding of a mass in one breast. A biopsy was performed and the radiologist stated that "he can usually tell if there's a malignancy when he's inserting the needle, and he doubted her mass was cancerous due to the ease of the insertion of the needle and the small size" The path report came back with a positive result for cancer. She's telling me it's been found early and it's very treatable, but I'm worried. She's been speaking with a general surgeon about a lumpectomy. She isn't sure of the stage yet since she hasn't been referred to an oncologist yet. Any coping tips/words of advice? I'm really shaken up.

jbdayton

I would get a breast surgeon over a general surgeon if it was me. Staging does not occur until after surgery.

The waiting is the hardest. Breathe, Breathe and Breathe. I found I needed to stay busy. I did puzzles, walked and watched comedies. Chose an activity to use up some of your pent up energy and calm your nerves.

Try to stay off the computer researching Google, it is old data and there is some scary stuff out there. In reality, the information I got from the oncologists and breast surgeon was 90% more positive than what I learned from Google. I wish I had not wasted so my much time researching useless info. I learned and only use this website for information.

Small early cancers are very beatable today.

Try to relax as much as possible. Once your mom has a plan for treatments it gets easier. We are holding your hand.

Hopfull2

hi jg, do not go with a general surgeon. Please don't. Get a referral do a breast surgeon do some research on a breast surgeon or a breast cancer center. I almost went with a general surgeon cuz I remember thinking I wanted it out asap and didn't want to wait on referrals but glad I didn't go that rout. Good lucj

Kicks

A Breast Surgeon is who should be seen - one who has specialized breast issues, not just any surgeon that cuts 'whatever'.

It is also a good idea to see a Medical Oncologist before any surgery/TX is scheduled. For the optimum outcome, neoadjuvant (pre-surgery) Chemo is becoming more common. It is a Team effort - surgeon, medical oncologist and radiological oncologist.

What type BC, ER/PR and HER2 status? These all come into play when it comes to the appropriate TX (treatment) plan - there are so many possibilities.

dAd

Please follow the advice in all the above posts and see a surgeon who specializes in breast surgery. Most general surgeons do so few surgeries annually that they do not have the expertise your mother requires. Good luck and best wishes!