New need help

Glad you found us at Connect. Can you say a bit more about what is going on? Was a lump discovered? Scans? Biopsy? Do you know the full diagnosis? If you can share more details I think others will respond more fully to your question. Thanks for filling us in.

yes, someone I know went to get a breast augmentation consultation a lump discovered, sent to a cancer clinic after exam ......NO BIOPSY or extended scans!!!! APRN stated possibly signs of breast cancer and wanted to start her on a femara as a precautionary step. She is in the process of trying to get a 2nd opinon, her pcp finally wrote the referral BUT it is for a certain health care system that he use........bs

Thanks for filling this in. I'm no doctor, but it seems usual to biopsy anything worrisome. I believe femara is for estrogen positive cancers--which need a biopsy to determine. Yes, she needs another opinion and hope she can get it soon. At the least she should get a clear explanation of any protocol suggested for her.

I think it would be very helpful if you did not need to wait weeks for more information of your breast cancer diagnosis. You receive your breast cancer biopsy and report but as a lay person you need answers to questions. Waiting weeks to get those answers causes undo anxiety. There is a disconnect between biopsy report and the need to know so that weeks do not pass to get important information so that the patient can feel somewhat in control of their body and life.

It's the wait time between biopsy and Dr.'s visit to get real answers that is so difficult. Waiting and wondering what will happen to my body.

I often hear people say this can be the most difficult time--so much uncertainty.

Especially when you have a rare form that only 1% of breast cancer patients are diagnosed.

Even after the pandemic, it takes weeks to get biopsy results. My oncologist explained that sometimes the pathologist needs to order materials to evaluate the sample, and shipping alone can take weeks. It's infuriating and creates an insane amount of anxiety for the patient. The radiologist who biopsied me told me he'd have results in a few days, and he was completely wrong. This made my anxiety even worse. Sending hugs. (About 3 years into treatment, this was a new lump. It was benign.)

Same here in Australia waiting 3 weeks after biopsy/ diagnosis to see surgeon for plan. It can be so isolating. I need to be selective what friends I discuss with and I make mistakes in the process. After Covid, staffing in every sector has been affected. I’m trying to have patience and faith and as the nurse said- stay positive, do things that bring you joy and lift you. Move away from negative people. I have to keep going back to her words as I have another 1.5 weeks to wait.