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Breast Cancer

Talking to Your Doctor About Early-Stage Breast Cancer

Summary & Participants

Finding out you have early-stage breast cancer can be overwhelming. But you can get a handle on the disease by learning some very crucial things about your own cancer. Getting the proper tests to determine the stage and characteristics of your cancer can help dictate what treatments are appropriate. Assembling the right team of doctors who are not only skilled, but also easy to talk to is another key element for managing the disease in the best possible way.

Medically Reviewed On: July 14, 2008

Webcast Transcript

STEVEN JONES, MD: That could be radiation therapy, which is probably six or seven weeks of using radiation, which is very targeted treatment to kill residual cancer cells. There is a possibility of adjuvant chemotherapy, which is drug treatment to try to improve her overall prognosis. And there is a possibility of adjuvant hormone therapy.

ANNOUNCER: In hormonal treatment in early stage disease, again there are options to consider.

STEVEN JONES, MD: The gold standard up to this time has been a drug called tamoxifen. Tamoxifen is an antiestrogen that works stop the cancer cells from multiplying or dividing. And that's proven to be extraordinarily effective treatment. There is now another option and that's one of the drugs called an anti-aromatase agent. The one drug that is approved for this is a drug called anastrazole or Arimidex.

ANNOUNCER: Speaking with your doctor is crucial to understanding the disease and its treatment. But initially a woman may need help digesting what's being said.

GENEROSA GRANA, MD: In the first visits with her physicians, the woman should prepare herself by gathering people to go with her for these visits. These are difficult visits that shouldn't be done alone, if there is a support system that can be tapped into.

The other thing that a woman should do is prepare by reviewing materials regarding breast cancer prior to her visit.

ANNOUNCER: Having an open dialogue with your doctor, knowing your options and keeping well-informed will prove to be a valuable tool for any patient fighting breast cancer.

STEVEN JONES, MD: I think getting the right information again is crucial so there are no big surprises. I like to spell out exactly what is going to be happening so somewhere, a few months into this, there is not suddenly a big surprise like "Oh, I forgot to tell you, you need seven weeks of radiation therapy." I mean that's a disastrous type of surprise.

GENEROSA GRANA, MD: Helping a woman gather the information that she needs at the very beginning will prepare her very well for what is to come. The more prepared the woman is the better she will be able to deal with the difficult decisions that are ahead of her, and the better she will be able to handle the side effects of the treatments that are in store for her.

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