The Very First Visit with my Surgeon

One of the gracious services offered by our local breast center was they had a nurse assigned to follow my case. The nurse, Nurse Lynn, would try to make it to most of our appointments to help or assist me through the breast cancer journey. They would be there for any questions, assist in scheduling the many appointments, and/or be available just for support.


Ted and I waited in the examining room, me sitting on the table in my pretty little gown, and Ted sitting in the chair looking around trying to keep my mind occupied with idle conversation. Our appointment was schedule for 2:00 pm, but our doctor was running a bit behind. Nurse Lynn came in to visit, and chatted a bit. My mind is going crazy, but I'm trying not to show it. I'm listening to Ted and Nurse Lynn chat, but I'm not really hearing anything they're saying. I wanted to see the doctor. Now!

Lynn left the room to check on our wait time, and came back to the room to let us know Dr. D was looking over my file and mammogram films. Her words to Lynn were, "This girl doesn't have cancer. She has pre-cancer!" Pre-Cancer? Was there such a thing? I thought either you had cancer or you didn't? I was confused, but I sure liked the sound of "pre-cancer."

Dr. D finally made her appearance. She was a sight. A very pretty lady wearing a very creative, artsy skirt, not "trendy", but one-of-a-kind type of style. I liked her right away. Not because of her pleasant appearance, but because of her confidence in herself. She was a straight shooter. She didn't talk fluff, but she had compassion when talking us, both of us.

We had my check-up, and she took the time explaining my options. My options were pretty simple right now. She recommended a Lumpectomy, and wanted to refer me to chat with a Radiologist. Mastectomy really wasn't a recommended option at the time, though I was ready to do it. She assured me that the Lumpectomy was the reasonable avenue to take for my early stage DCIS Breast Cancer. She took her time answering my list of questions. Note: Always bring a list of questions to all your doctor's visits. She stressed to me that this was not a rush. We could plan the surgery any time. The sooner the better was my thought. She also told me I'm not gonna die from this. I needed to hear that.

One visit checked off my list! 30 more visits to go!