Pathology Results

[Couch3]

I had my lumpectomy on the 18th, and my follow-up with the surgeon was yesterday, on the 23rd, but her office called and cancelled.  I called her office back and left a very specific message:  "I'm OK with cancelling the appointment, but I need my pathology results".  Got a call back while in a meeting ("Hi, I'm returning your call") with no mention of results, and when I tried to call back learned they have closed for the holidays and will not be back until the 29th.  (Interestingly, they closed up shop BEFORE the time of the appointment they cancelled, which said to me that the cancellation was more about their need to cut out early for the holidays than about their need to provide proper follow-up care for a patient they had carved up like a Thanksgiving turkey.  Is it obvious that I'm rather angry?)
  
My instinct is telling me that if it WAS cancer they never would have cancelled on me and told me that I didn't need to reschedule, but I keep wondering "How do I even know they've seen the pathology report yet?".  Besides, they haven't done anything yet that would suggest to me a level of professionalism that makes me feel comfortable without hearing the words from them.

Does anyone have any suggestions for me as to how I can get these results without having to wait another five days?  Eleven days since my biopsy seems just a bit too much to expect me to tolerate.  Also, does anyone think that this whole situation is odd, or am I maybe just overreacting?  Is it possible that the MD doesn't even have my path report yet?

[CCF-RN,MSN-rf]

Dear couch3:  It is possible that the doctor did not have the results but it is unfortunate that no message either way was communicated to you.  Eleven days is long.  Today is the 29th, so you should call ASAP and make sure that you receive the results today.  Hopefully, it is negative.

[deepa]

I totally "get" how angry and frustrated you feel, and why.  I'd also support your sense of intuition about the possibility that the cancellation could convey a negative result (that is, "no news is good news").    

One option might be to call your doctor's answering service, speak to the on-call, and see if you can have your doctor get in touch with you sooner than when you are rescheduled for.  You might need to be insistent.  Why feel guilty about spoiling his holiday?--seems he may be doing that for you.  (I can hear the docs screaming about this suggestion, but hey.)  But before you decide to call, consider how you would feel if he told you over the phone on the holiday that there was cancer.

If you have friends and family with you at this time (or can seek them out) to support you, listen to you, and help you wait this one through, that is another course of action.  This process is stressful and a challenge to each of us to find our own ways to cope with it.

It has been my observation that some health care providers "forget" the way it is for the person on the other side, and just don't take the human feeling factors into account in the way they behave and overlook the impact of their behavior.  These situations are "routine" for them, but it is not for you.

May you have a holiday with those who love you.

[vermontgirl]

Perhaps you could reach your surgeon before your scheduled appointment by trying to contact her through the hospital rather than through her office??  I really feel for you--waiting for the various results at each step of diagnosis and treatment is the worst!!!  When I told my surgeon how difficult the waiting was, he said to remember that "worrying about what the result might be is not going to change what the result will be "(or in other words: try not to waste energy on worrying about the results until you hear or see them).  Believe it or not, reminding myself of what he told me that day did help me to remain sane during the waiting.  Hang in there and I hope your results end up being good!

[japdip]

I'm curious ...... did you not have a biopsy before the lumpectomy ?? I agree, you should not have to wait that long for path. report. Is your surgeon on call sometime during the holidays? If so I would contact her ..... at least you could ask if she has the path. report and tell her of your concern. The squeaky wheel gets the grease you know.  Best Wishes ...........