Now I see the Surgeon

I get the referral to a General Surgeon, and I wonder what I can find out about him. I do a web search and find that he sees 55 patients a day. Dr. P, what were you thinking? And he does surgery. How does that translate to quality care? How did you select him? Well, not to delay. I’ll see him and see what kind of vibe I get.

May 24, 2011 General Surgeon visit.
Wow, I haven’t been on this end of a Dr./Patient relationship for a real concerning condition (to me) since I’ve been a real adult. My visits with my parents for Mom’s appointments didn’t leave me with the same impression. Dr. I showed concern for me and my support system (as I call them my support staff), his clinical impressions, etc. He drew a sketch for me of the proposed incision and talked while his lunch waited for him. Thank goodness it wasn’t a hot lunch that day! My appt. was at 11:15 and I think I left the office at 12:30. That included a short wait, him taking a call from another physician, my getting out of and into clothing, and consultation time. I’m guessing a full hour with the physician, or close. 55 patients a day – I think not! I tested him – would he laugh at my corny jokes? He did, gotta hand it to him. His office will schedule a consult with a reconstructive surgeon. This tumor has a name – cystosarcoma phyllodes – at least for now. We’ll see what final pathology brings. Represents about 1% of all breast tumors. Is not genetically linked. Is not treated with anything besides surgical removal if benign. Here’s a little info. http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/188728-overview

The measurements – hold on cuz your gonna say, “Melody, really, how could you not have found that earlier?” and I’ll tell you that I already told you how that happened. Go back and read. 6.5 cm x 3.4 cm x 6.2 cm. That’s almost my entire breast. Let’s say I did my last self-breast exam 6 months ago…would I not have found something then? It’s a fast-growing tumor, not to be confused with rapid mitotic cellular activity.

Treatment – mastectomy & reconstruction. No radiation and no chemotherapy, no lymph node resection because it doesn’t metastasize that way even if metastatic. Yes! You see how really fortunate I am.

I continue to visualize works of art that are alien and breast related. Hang on – I’ll show you some pictures in a bit.