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Preparing for your appointment
By Mayo Clinic staffGenerally, people return to the doctor who treated the initial cancer. However, in some cases, you may decide to see a new oncologist. If you're seeing a different doctor than the one who treated your first breast cancer, make sure the new doctor has access to your medical records from the initial treatment.
What you can do
- Be prepared to discuss your new symptoms and any other health problems you've had since your first cancer diagnosis.
- If you're seeing a new doctor, request your medical records from your former doctor. If you already have these, be sure to bring your medical records and any imaging tests you have with you. Otherwise, you'll need to sign an information release form so that your new provider's office can acquire the records.
- Make a list of all medications, vitamins or supplements that you're taking. Let your doctor know if you have tried any alternative treatments for your cancer.
- Consider asking a family member or friend to come with you. Learning your cancer has returned will likely make it hard to remember all of the information provided to you during an appointment. Someone who accompanies you may remember something that you missed or forgot.
- Write down questions to ask your doctor.
If you might have recurrent breast cancer, some basic questions to ask your doctor include:
- Has my cancer returned?
- Are there other possible causes for my symptoms?
- What kinds of tests do I need? Do these tests require any special preparation?
- What is the hormone receptor status of the cancer recurrence?
- What treatments are available to me at this stage, and which do you recommend?
- What types of side effects can I expect from treatment?
- Are there any alternatives to the approach that you're suggesting?
- Are there any clinical trials open to me?
- What's my prognosis?
What to expect from your doctor
Your doctor is likely to ask you a number of questions. Being ready to answer them may reserve time to go over points you want to spend more time on. Your doctor may ask:
- When did you first begin experiencing symptoms again?
- Has there been a change in the symptoms over time?
- Do these symptoms feel different from when you were first diagnosed with cancer?
- How do you feel overall?
- Have you had any unexpected weight loss? Have you lost your appetite?
- Are you experiencing any pain?
References
- Hurria A. Follow-up for breast cancer survivors: Patterns of relapse and long-term complications of therapy. http://www.uptodateonline.com/home/index.html. Accessed March 19, 2011.
- Breast cancer. American Cancer Society. http://www.cancer.org/acs/groups/cid/documents/webcontent/003090-pdf.pdf. Accessed March 17, 2011.
- Punglia RS, et al. Local therapy and survival in breast cancer. New England Journal of Medicine. 2007;356:2399.
- Hayes DF. Overview of treatment for locally advanced, recurrent, and metastatic breast cancer. http://uptodateonline.com/index. Accessed March 19, 2011.
- What you need to know about breast cancer. National Cancer Institute. http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/wyntk/breast/AllPages/Print. Accessed March 19, 2011.
- Living with uncertainty: The fear of cancer recurrence. American Cancer Society http://www.cancer.org/docroot/MLT/content/MLT_4_1x_Living_With_Uncertainty_-_The_Fear_of_Cancer_Recurrence.asp. Accessed March 19, 2011.
- Hirsch A, et al. Management of locoregional recurrence of breast cancer after mastectomy. http://www.uptodateonline.com/home/index.html. Accessed March 19, 2011.
- Debled M et al.Prognostic factors of early distant recurrence in hormone receptor-positive, postmenopausal breast cancer patients receiving adjuvant tamoxifen therapy: Results of a retrospective analysis. Cancer. 2007;109:2197.
- Rausch SM, et al. Complementary and alternative medicine: Use and disclosure in radiation oncology community practice. Supportive Care Cancer. 2011;19:521.
- Pruthi S (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. April 11, 2011.
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