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Preparing for your appointment
By Mayo Clinic staffStart by first seeing your family doctor or a general practitioner if you have any signs or symptoms that worry you. If your doctor suspects you may have inflammatory breast cancer, you may be referred to a doctor who specializes in treating cancer (oncologist).
Because appointments can be brief, and because there's often a lot of ground to cover, it's a good idea to be prepared for your appointment. Here's some information to help you get ready for your appointment, and what to expect from your doctor.
What you can do
- Be aware of any pre-appointment restrictions. At the time you make the appointment, be sure to ask if there's anything you need to do in advance, such as restrict your diet.
- Write down any symptoms you're experiencing, including any that may seem unrelated to the reason for which you scheduled the appointment.
- Write down key personal information, including any major stresses or recent life changes.
- Make a list of all medications, as well as any vitamins or supplements, that you're taking.
- Take a family member or friend along, if possible. Sometimes it can be difficult to absorb all the information provided during an appointment. Someone who accompanies you may remember something that you missed or forgot.
- Write down questions to ask your doctor.
Your time with your doctor is limited, so preparing a list of questions will help you make the most of your time together. List your questions from most important to least important in case time runs out. For inflammatory breast cancer, some basic questions to ask your doctor include:
- Do I have inflammatory breast cancer?
- Has my inflammatory breast cancer spread beyond my breast?
- Do I need more tests?
- Can I have a copy of my pathology report?
- What are my treatment options?
- What are the potential risks of each treatment option?
- Can any treatments cure my inflammatory breast cancer?
- Is there one treatment you feel is best for me?
- If you had a friend or family member in my situation, what would you recommend?
- How much time can I take to choose a treatment?
- How will cancer treatment affect my daily life?
- Should I see a specialist? What will that cost, and will my insurance cover it?
- Are there any brochures or other printed material that I can take with me? What Web sites do you recommend?
In addition to the questions that you've prepared to ask your doctor, don't hesitate to ask questions at any time that you don't understand something.
- Breast cancer. Fort Washington, Pa.: National Comprehensive Cancer Network. http://www.nccn.org/professionals/physician_gls/PDF/breast.pdf. Accessed Jan. 7, 2010.
- Inflammatory breast cancer: Questions and answers. National Cancer Institute. http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Sites-Types/IBC/print?page=&keyword=. Accessed Jan.7, 2010.
- Woodward WA, et al. Inflammatory breast cancer. Seminars in Radiation Oncology. 2009;19:256.
- Inflammatory breast cancer. American Cancer Society. http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_6X_Inflammatory_Breast_Cancer.asp. Accessed Jan. 12, 2010.
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