34 year old wife just diagnosed

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  • jmute
    jmute Member Posts: 34
    edited April 2015

    Im about a hour and a half away from osu, we've been traveling nearly a hour a day to go to the kettering cancer center. Why not go an extra half hour to go to a breast cancer center where everyone is under the,same roof and they share info daily Is what I keep telling her.

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  • MelissaDallas
    MelissaDallas Member Posts: 7,268
    edited April 2015

    Even at a good center I don't think it is at all unusual for the doctors to have different opinions as to how big an area will be when they get in there based on mammogram and ultrasound. It's just an educated guess & the post-surgery frequently differs considerably, especially for ill-defined areas of DCIS. Has your wife had an MRI

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  • Sunflowercat
    Sunflowercat Member Posts: 177
    edited April 2015

    jmute - I know it's frustrating, but until she's had surgery to excise the tumor and you get the final pathology report back and your tumor board meets to discuss it, you won't know the whole story or your final treatment plan. For me that was the worst wait.

    You need to feel like your team is working together for your wife, so if switching for better, more consistent, communicative care is an option, I say go for it! Does your facility have a cancer nurse navigator? They can be a godsend. Mine was able to get all of my information for me and review my results and reports with me as I didn't actually meet with my MO until after my mastectomy and the tumor board had met to discuss my treatment plan. (A full 6 weeks after surgery!) Thanks to her I knew what was happening and I had a good idea going into my first MO appointment of what to expect. If you have a cancer nurse navigator - use them!

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  • jmute
    jmute Member Posts: 34
    edited April 2015

    No just a ct scan and an ultra sound, also no on the breast nurse...as far as I know.

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  • Sunflowercat
    Sunflowercat Member Posts: 177
    edited April 2015

    most cancer centers have a nurse navigator. I'd be surprised if they didn't have one. When you go for your appointment, find out who it is and go introduce yourself. Their job is to guide you through this. Use them

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  • JohnSmith
    JohnSmith Member Posts: 651
    edited April 2015

    Yeah, I echo what others are saying. Find the nurse navigator. They'll be able to break down the jargon so it makes sense.

    Also, ask for a copy of the pathology report. Armed with that, we can help you more.

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  • jmute
    jmute Member Posts: 34
    edited April 2015

    i have the pathology report but I think it was printed before all the tests came back. It doesn't show er/pr or her status (they told us it was er/pr + her2- at the meeting with the oncologist). It does say it is a grade 1 tumor at .7 cm. And then we meet with the general surgeon and he is showing us the ct scan and there is a lump that is 2.7 cm. I think he is looking at the whole lump on her breast in the ct scan which involes a couple of cysts and fibrous tissue.....hell I don't know what to think

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  • Italychick
    Italychick Member Posts: 2,343
    edited April 2015

    jmute my lump had IDC and DCIS in it, but they only focused on the IDC portion, so I'm not sure what they can tell until they actually get it out. Don't lose heart!

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  • bettysgirl
    bettysgirl Member Posts: 938
    edited April 2015

    I so feel your pain in the up and down, don't know what to think stage of the game. I hate this waiting and wondering and questions time that is the beginning of all DX's. You don't know the lingo, you don't know what to think, you fear the worst. Once you get a definitive diagnosis, get a plan in place, the stress will step down a notch! and I agree this is the BEST website for encouragement and answers!!

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