CRAZY TOWN WAITING ROOM - TESTS coming up? All Stages Welcome.

Mari..so sorry to hear your news ..it's so hard in the beginning..but you will feel so much better when your doctor's put a plan in place for you ....Do you have an appointment set up with your surgeon ? Pull up a chair here , and come and chat..we all know exactly what your going through. Hugs

Octo..yes ..you'd told us about your eye, when you were living away from home for so long having treatment. Good idea to pick up your screen from work..Daughter and her hubby are both working from home . It's crazy in their house ....Daughter has the office nook ..and her hubby has the end of the dining room table.. He has to share the table with their 2 kids ( 10 and 7 ) as schools are shut and on- line learning has been put in place ..and they need to be helped with it ! Ugh !!!! .All states here are boarded off from each other ..to try and stop the spread...Sister isn't happy ..her daughter and family live just at the end of the Gold Coast ...their place is only about an hour from here...but they actually live right on the border in N.S.W..so they can't visit each other !!!. Gosh I hope they can come up with a vaccine !!

Sandy..Sorry to hear about your housekeeper's husband ..how terrifying for them :-(

Iris ..hope your store is back in action soon !!

Take Care everyone ..

Pull up a chair, Mari...we have all been there and are here for you...as others have said, having the plan will help!

Lucy, you will be happy to hear that I am starting to plan a trip to Oz, tentatively in September of 2021...with hubby this time. So, mark your calendar! :-) will keep you posted...

For whoever asked why they couldn't use q-tips instead of the testing swabs...(Iris?)... I don't know the full answer but I've seen pics and those swabs are at least four times as long as your average q-tip: apparently they have to go way back in the nasal cavity....

Hope all stay well!

Octogirl

yeap, i was the one asking why not old q tips, sort of thought as you said, just on a frustrating day for me I guess. Yesterday was seriously cleaning of my fridge. It is located at a tough spot in kitchen and taking the shelfs out to clean the inside is a real nightmare. But got most done, I just kept resting a lot in between shelves. Still got the little shelf where cheese and deli stuff goes, hope to do without pulling it out as it would be an issue.

Ok, off to lunch, also did a bunch of cooking yesterday, roasted spagetti squash and some chili to go on top. I got eat it all week but more likely will freeze some.

Welcome to the new person and to all, stay in and safe

hi -

It’s a bit tough getting appointments w this virus. But most are willing to do a teleconference as soon as they read all reports. I read my report and it is DCIS - I actually haven’t spoken to my gyn he never did call me to tell me the news or go over anything - or refer me to a team of specialists. I’ve had my good friend refer me to her team at Sloan and my former gyn gave me the name to where his family goes.

I’ve got the wheels in motion - anyone know of alternative medicine - ?

Hi Meribellaz, I am so sorry you had to join us but you are in a great place here. Lots of combined experience plus a lot of experts weigh in with great information and recommendations. Your situation sounds a lot like mine. I had postponed my yearly mammogram (I had huge dense breasts and never missed a mammogram) in 2012 because we were in the process of moving. I was upset at myself when I found out I had cancer in June, 2013 but I later learned from my breast surgeon there was a good chance it would not have shown up six months prior to the mammogram that caught the cancer. In fact, when I had to have extra films because my regular mammogram had a few suspicious spots, the radiologist told me I was fine and to come back in a year. I asked to see the mammogram so she pulled it up on the computer. I did not like the white line and micro calcifications I saw so I requested a biopsy. The radiologist disagreed with me but scheduled the biopsy because I was concerned. It turned out to be cancer. Had I gone in 6-8 months earlier, it may have been missed. Your initial diagnosis is DCIS, that is very good. With DCIS you are at stage zero, which is good news. It sounds like you have things in place and will be getting your appointments lined up soon. Corona virus or not, it will never go fast enough. YOU want (and need) answers yesterday. Yes, we know that feeling.

Like you, my gynecologist never called to tell me either. The breast center called me to tell me I had breast cancer and they were the ones to set me up with a breast surgeon. They set me up with a very good doctor and I was very pleased. Sloan has an excellent reputation. You will be in good hands. Hang in there, like all the kind ladies have said, this is the really hard part. Once you have your complete diagnosis and a treatment plan in place, you will feel better. We are here for you.

Octo ..Woo-Hoo !!! We are both very excited that you and hubby are coming to visit !!!! Now we'll have to plan some fun outings to do !!!!

Hugs to all

Maribellaz, there is new guidance for bc treatment during the COVID pandemic--my own breast surgeon was part of the team that co-wrote it:

https://www.breastsurgeons.org/docs/statements/ASB...

Generally, the goal now is to avoid exposing both cancer patients and their care teams by minimizing in-person doctor-patient interactions and avoiding facility visits--especially with hospital resources strained to the breaking point. They've worked out a "triage" system for treatment (priority A for life-threatening and/or extremely painful complications of MBC, priority B for patients receiving chemo (later-stage or TNBC) or targeted therapies, and priority C for DCIS, early-stage IDC or ILC. The recommendation now for DCIS is neoadjuvant endocrine therapy for ER+, and either very short-course radiation or observation for ER-. They suggest surgery should wait till the pandemic danger passes, and if performed lumpectomy is now preferable (if mastectomy is done, they recommend against reconstruction). Even for early-stage Luminal A IDC with a low OncotypeDX score, the recommendation is just endocrine therapy--not even radiation if the patient is >65. For those who are already in between lumpectomy & radiation (such as my husband's medical partner), radiation can safely be delayed 20 weeks.

Even screenings are being cut back: no routine mammograms, and for MBC patients no routine scans or tumor marker testing for staging. Any treatments that can be self-administered should be (with online guidance if necessary). No more Prolia shots or Zometa infusions, no more DEXA Scans. (Glad I had mine before all this). Treatment of mets should be to arrest progress and relieve pain.

Talk to your team at MSKCC--they may or may not concur, but the surgeons & oncologists who wrote the guidelines come from some of the most renowned breast cancer centers in the US, UK, and Japan.

sandy, sounds like what my mskcc doc is doing with me, no pain, last pet was canceled, onc is doing phone meeting, not sure if the chemo will resume the end of the month as I have been off for the last week. Right now, virus seems to have moved south to mid jersey as in my town and county. Maybe they will have me back on one of the pills.

Not what will occure for me end of month as not looking forward to a trip to the hospital for infusion...

Maribelle, I'm so sorry that you are dealing with this during these uniquely stressful times. I have been treated at MSK's Manhattan breast center these past five years. I have received nothing but good care and have been especially grateful for the united approach to treatment. Their insurance department is excellent and proactive. Good luck to you--let me know if you have questions.

Sandy, I hope your housekeeper and family are okay.

Molly, hoping your telehealth appointment is helpful.

Glad things are going well, Iris.

We're doing okay, just waiting it out like everyone else. We had a diversion the other day: 20-year-old son--now home and doing college online--went into the park for an early morning run, as he's been doing every couple of days. He came back a few minutes later and said he'd been bitten by a dog, with a bleeding half-moon on his calf where the animal had actually broken the skin. He found rabies info on the CDC website, and we called his former pediatrician, who said wash it, use antibiotic cream, let us know if you want an appointment. The next morning he went out at the same time that he'd been bitten and found the dog and its owner, who confirmed that it was up-to-date on rabies shots. The bite is healing, and my son is going to avoid canines with strong herding instincts in future runs.

Thinking of you all. It occurs to me that the world has become Crazy Town, and Crazy Town is the world.

rainny, that is terrible about your sons dog bite. 2 of my nephews and one of my neices all had dog bites as they were growing up. I confess I am very cautious when I see dogs, only ok with if someone has them on a leash anc controling them.

I agree, the Msk insurance staff is amazing. I have never had an issue or payment question with them. Once when my onc prescribed new med....blood thinner......pharm thought my payment too much and researched my insurance for any help, he came back and said you have a good part d plan. Course i do go into the catostrophic thing due to all my asthma meds

Hopefully that is the case Sandy but I have implants after mastectomy so not sure if I would still have anything leftover from the seroma.

Ducky, I logged in to see your post and it was removed. I hope all is well.

Well we have had a bit of good news in my state. Hospitalizations are dropping, this trend started started late last week! Hoping it keeps up!

IL has moved up to #4 in the country for confirmed cases. Of course, that's because we've ramped up testing past the 10,000/week goal--the proportion of tests-to-positives has fallen from 21% to 17%.

Sorry, but I'm staying put. Nobody can put a gun to my head and make me (or anyone else) eat in a restaurant, buy clothes & tchotchkes we don't need any more (much less try on what's been on other people's bodies), get my hair & nails done, attend events (or perform at them) or travel for vacation. I'm not laying down my life for anyone else's lifestyle, leisure or looks. NOBODY should.

We are doing a slow opening. I have given my dog home grooming, but he refuses to let me do anything around his eyes. Inability to see his eyes has interfered with my relationship with him. I found out last night that groomers will be allowed to do curbside pickup, and I told Tippy that this was going to an occasion to celebrate.