Oncologist appointment tomorrow - what questions should I ask?

After being diagnosed on 18th January and going through all the various test, I finally get to see the oncologist tomorrow. Would like to hear from anyone who has any suggestions about what questions would be good to ask. 

Also what are your experiences of how long it took for treatment to start after first oncology appointment. As my breast cancer is grade 3 and fast growing, I'm worried about it spreading, before my treatment even gets started. 

Was it suggested you have a PICC line or port?

Parents
  • Hi everyone, hope you all enjoy the weekend. Got my dad's 90th birthday party today, shame about the weather. 

    Greeny80, hope you are feeling OK after your last treatment.

    NGS, last treatment on Tuesday, that must be such a great feeling. Hope all goes well.

    Carol, have a lovely weekend away. 

    Xxx

  • Have a fab time at your Dad's 90th. Hope it is a gorgeous day/evening fiull of celebration. The weather has perked up a little here so i hope you've managed to enjoy some sunshine too.

    I'm doing ok. Just going through the motions. Yesterday was probably the toughest day but it's all manageable still, just bad nausea, tiredness, achy etc...but you just have to go through the motions and let your body work through the side effects!...feeling a little brighter today and i can feel the nausea easing so hoping i'm over the worst! Just taken the dog out inbetween the showers and now back on the sofa!....My kids are off on a residential with school all next week so as much as i'll miss them it will be nice to have a very restful week! Let's see how much rest i end up doing!! Not very good at doing nothing!!

    One more to go though so that's good!...saw my radiotherapist on Thursday and i start 3 weeks of radio on the 29th July. Sorry if i've already said that!!!!

    NGS - yes good luck for your last treatment!!! Amazing!!!!!!!!! So nearly there!!!!

    Carol - sorry i missed that you were away, where are you off to? Have fun!

    Enjoy the festivities hits weekend Pippin and good luck for your next treatment too.

    Take care everyone and enjoy your weekend xx

    xx

  • Hi Greeny80, we had a wonderful family day, which went really well. Had a few showers but lovely in between. Had a few stomach issues during the night (not great when staying at someone else's house), but feel much better today. I was drinking a lot of alcohol free wine and think maybe it was all the sugar in it that, maybe caused it. Make the most of the time to yourself this week and have a good rest. I'm sure the kids will have a great time too. Will be good to get the radiotherapy done with and out of the way. It's a lot to deal with, having to go everyday. I hope you start to feel better this week and are over the worst of it. Just one more to go, that must feel so good. Next cycle for me on Tuesday, then only one more for me too, yay!

    Hope everyone has a good week ahead. Xx

  • Hey Pippin,

    So glad you had such a lovely time celebrating over the weekend. Interesting about the tummy issues and the non alcoholic wine and sugar. I'm sure that was the reason....hope it's all resolved now and that you're feeling good. 

    I think i'm now over the worst of my last cycle. Had my last Filgastrim injection today which usually makes me feel a bit groggy/achy/tired but then I usually bounce back so definitely looking foward to a week or so of feeling good before my LAST CHEMO!!! Whoop!!!

    Felt pretty ropey over the weekend but definitley feeling better with more energy today...kids were all packed up and they left this morning for their week's residential! Going to be a very strange week without them!

    I hope all goes well for you on Tuesday..penultimate one! End is in sight!...at least for the chemo part!! So yes i hope it all goes and side effects remain manageable.

    Hope everyone else is ok too??

      How are you doing? Have you now completed chemo??

    Take care

    xx

Reply
  • Hey Pippin,

    So glad you had such a lovely time celebrating over the weekend. Interesting about the tummy issues and the non alcoholic wine and sugar. I'm sure that was the reason....hope it's all resolved now and that you're feeling good. 

    I think i'm now over the worst of my last cycle. Had my last Filgastrim injection today which usually makes me feel a bit groggy/achy/tired but then I usually bounce back so definitely looking foward to a week or so of feeling good before my LAST CHEMO!!! Whoop!!!

    Felt pretty ropey over the weekend but definitley feeling better with more energy today...kids were all packed up and they left this morning for their week's residential! Going to be a very strange week without them!

    I hope all goes well for you on Tuesday..penultimate one! End is in sight!...at least for the chemo part!! So yes i hope it all goes and side effects remain manageable.

    Hope everyone else is ok too??

      How are you doing? Have you now completed chemo??

    Take care

    xx

Children
  • Hi Greeny80, I'm feeling pretty good today thanks. Went for walk this morning and also got all my housework done. I like to do this the day before treatment, so I can rest for a few days after chemo. I had my pre chemo telephone review this morning  and I'm all good to go tomorrow. As my echocardiogram was fine I can also continue with the phesgo injections, which is good. I mentioned that I'd had no confirmation letter regarding ct thorax scan I had in April, showed no changes, or plan about moving forward. She told me I will get further scans every 3/4  months for the next two years.  I also told her  that I wad supposed to be sent an appointment for the oncologist, so she said she'll arrange for my next review to be face to face. She aldo asked if I'd received appointment to go back to see the surgeon, as that was supposed to have been arranged. When I said I hadn't heard anything, she said she would chase it up. So it was a very productive review and I feel a lot happier about everything.

    Sorry to hear you didn't feel so well over the weekend. It's good to hear you feel better today and that you're now finished the filgrastim injections. Hopefully you'll now feel well up until your next chemo. Great that you only have one more to go!  Pleased to hear that the children got off OK,  I'll bet they'll have a great time. I'm sure the house will seem empty with them away, but you'll get a good rest.xx

    NGS, good luck with your last treatment tomorrow, hope all goes well for you. It must be a great feeling knowing its your last one. Make sure you ring that bell! Xx

  • Hi Pippin,

    I'm so glad to hear that your review went well and that you are all ready for your penultimate chemo session. It'll not be much longer now, until you get to ring that bell too! I hope that all goes well for you this time.

    Jolamine xx

  • Thanks Jolamine. I can now see the light at the end of the tunnel, which is a great feeling. Hopefully, won't have too long to wait for surgery, feeling a bit nervous about this now. Back in January I was told it would be a mastectomy, with reconstruction, using tissue from my tummy, so quite a big operation. I'm hoping the plan won't have changed since then. I'm waiting for an appointment to go back to see the surgeon at the moment. Ideally I would like a double mastectomy, to avoid going through this again, if it returned in other breast. Not sure they will consider doing this though. Hope you are keeping well. Xx

  • Morning all 

    lovely catching up on everyone’s news 

    Pippin - sounds like you had a lovely time celebrating your Dads 90 th and making precious memories. - weirdly I feel icky on non alcoholic fizz too 

    carol - I hope you too had a great weekend 

    greeny - enjoy the child free rest - before you know it they will be home with boundless energy 

    so pippin - after today you have just one more to go.  What an achievement.  
    you too now Greeny - you’ll have smashed it - the hardest part will be done 

    I’m in at 1 pm today.  I feel quite emotional 

    last chemo.  Last cold cap - last day with PICC line - last round on injections 

    I’ve not bounced back as well since last treatment but likely cumulative build up of docetaxel.   I’m still struggling with food.  I get jaw pain when I start to chew which I’m guessing is the bone infusion.  - I speak to oncologist again Friday so will ask him then. Also still have the taste of metal and heartburn.  

    i have an appointment with breast surgeon on 2 nd July - pippin I would ask as ultimately it’s your decision.  

    wishing everyone positive vibes for either treatment today  , or recovery - the sun is shining so hope you can make the most of it 

    best wishes all xx 

  • Morning ladies!

    So good to hear from you all.

    Good luck today NGS - wow yes there must be all sorts of emotions...really hope you get through this round smoothly..and then you're done! Well with chemo at least but that's definitely a milestone worth celebrating! Sorry about the jaw pain though, that sounds horrid. My treatment is definitley cumulative..this round was harder than the previous...but just holding on to the fact i only have to do it ONCE MORE!!!! How long do you have to have the bone infusions for? The taste thing is so frustrating too isn't it? I'm drinking a coffee but it tastes weird but i think i'm just craving the ritual and the normality!..and the caffeine! Good luck with all your appts. Hope you get some answers and perhaps a surgery date too.

    Pippin good luck today too. Penultimate one!!! I always do ALL the chores the day before chemo too, think the steroids help me be super productive but also just gives me peace of mind that the house is in order when you're not feeling your Sunday best! Hope your side effects are minimal this time around. Rest up but enjoy those walks! So nearly there! Glad you had a good follow up appt though, sounds like it was very productive and hopefully you'll get some answers soon.

    Carol hope you're doing ok!

    I'm feeling a lot better. Just have achy bones today - i think just from the last filgrastim injection. I was going to go for a run this morning but my body i think needs another day! Find it so hard to listen to my body but i'm trying really hard!!!! Maybe a gentle pilates and a stretch may be better! Off to meet a friend for a dog walk so that will be nice....i'm not sure why i'm up and at it so early when i have no school run but here we are!!! Enjoying some peace and quiet and not having to shout at the kids to brush their teeth a million times!!!...i am missing them though!!...

    Right will stop waffling! Good luck today ladies and yes make sure you ring that bell!....and when you're out the other side make sure you celebrate! Our bodies have been through a lot, you should be so proud of yourself and your body for getting through this gruelling and wearing treatment!

    We're nearly through chemo ladies!!!!!!!!

    Take care and sending positive vibes for mild side effects this time around....will be thinking of you xx

  • Oh wow! Good luck indeed  for your last chemo!  Woohoo!!!  Hope it goes well.  And you too  , just 2 more to go including this one.  

    So sorry to hear about the jaw pain    That must be awful.  I'm dreading taking the Ibandronic acid because that can apparently cause bone pain too (I will be taking it in tablet form for 3 years).   yours sounds similar to mine, as I have to go to the dentist for a checkup before I start too because of the jaw necrosis issue.  Honestly it feels never ending, but I truly hope the worst is behind us all!   

    I have my radiotherapy consultant appointment tomorrow afternoon so will have a better idea then what to expect and when radiotherapy will start. In the meantime I had a lovely weekend away in Kings Lynn and even had a go on the dodgems lol.  It was great fun and the weather was pretty kind to us too.  I've broken the fear of being away from home at least!

    I used to clean the house before treatment too lol.  Like you guys, it was mainly so I didn't have to sit and look at the mess at the weekend and feel guilty because I couldn't do it. 

    Hope everyone had an amazing weekend.  Enjoy your dog walk this afternoon   xx

  • Hi Pippin,

    You must be incredibly relieved to see the end of chemo in sight now. It's good to hear that you'll soon have an appointment to discuss your mastectomy. As I said before, most surgeons are reluctant to remove a good breast, as they say that there is no evidence to show that this improves our chances. However, make sure to discuss this with your surgeon.

    Jolamine xx

  • Thanks Jolamine, will certainly have that discussion with the surgeon, but as you say it will likely be their decision. Just hoping to avoid going through all this again. I will post an update once I find out, after my appointment. Have a lovely day and thank you for your support. Xx

  • Hi Carol, Hope your radiotherapy appt went well today and you now have a clearer picture about what that looks like. Glad you had a fab time away in Kings Lynn! Nice to be doing some normal and fun things! 

    Pippin/NGS - How are you feeling today? Hope you're doing ok. Really hope the jaw pain is ok NGS.

    Pippin - are you HER2 Positive then? Is that why you're having the Phesgo injections. Good luck to the hubby!! Are you able to give them to yourself or is that not an option? Do you currently have the Filgastrim injections? I'm initially moving onto Zoladex and Anastrozole...and also Abemaciclib??  REALLY hoping and praying that my side effecst on those are ok...guess time will tell! That's good that you don't have to go into the hospital for the injections though, that will save a lot of time and hassle travelling to the hospital. 

    I'm feeling good today, woke up and felt my energy levels were back! Hurrah! Even took myself off for a 6km run.... it wasn't pretty and it wasn't fast but it was GOOD for the soul!!

    Anyway i just wanted to check in, hope you are all doing ok! xx

  • Hi Greeny80, yes I am HER2 positive and will be on phesgo fo a year as far as I know. You can learn to give them yourself, but I wasn't keen, so hubby is learning to do it. They went through all the do's and don'ts with him and he observed it being done. They then need to observe him administering two before he can do them at home. I have 7 days of filgrastim at the moment, starting on day 4 after chemo, hubby does these too. What are the Zoladex, Anastrozole and Abemaciclib for? Is it tablets, injection or infusions? Glad to hear that you are feeling good today and managed to get out for your run. The exercise definitely makes you feel so much better. I went on my usual walk this morning too, also managed to get my ironing done this afternoon. Only managed 4 hours of sleep last night, so glad it's last day of steroids. Hope the rest of your week is good and you can enjoy this lovely weather. Xxx