Dr. Hiotis--the "C" word becomes official

Back to back days of driving to NY from Delaware....actually no big deal. Considering the appointment today was at almost the same time as yesterday we were once again trapped in cross town traffic on 34th Street. And to make matters worse we were boxed in by those stupid double-decker sight-seeing buses.

Parking was easy; checking in at the registration desk was easy and the women behind the desk were even nice. Something was wrong. Oh wait! That's right. We were at the NYU Cancer Institute and the women at Registration damn well better be nice because all the folks checking in HAVE CANCER!

We went upstairs and Mom was quite quiet. There really wasn't anyone in the waiting area (it wasn't a room -- it was a whole floor) who "looked like they had cancer" ...thank God! THAT would have put her over the edge.... But still, Mom was quiet and I let her be. Eventually she said, "There are only women here." And I said, "That's because the 3 doctors here specialize ONLY in breast cancer." This actually seemed to put her at ease for some reason. ...mine is not to question why, mere to accept....

Within 10 minutes of our schedule appointment we were called in to see Dr. Hiotis. And within 30 seconds of her stepping into her office where we waited both Mom and I LIKED her. She spoke to Mom, not me no matter how hard I tried to "butt in." And Mom was happy about that. She spoke TO Mom, but KNEW that I was the one absorbing everything--this was one smart and GOOD person. She didn't mince words yet she was kind in her presentation. After she physically examined Mom, she said,

We're going to send you upstairs for a fine needle biopsy in a few moments but my suspicions are that we are dealing with a cancer in your right breast. I see what Dr. Mitnick is talking about on the films with regard to the left breast...wait, let me show you...here, this spot. And while I'm inclined to think it may be a concern it is not at this immediate time. We need to focus on the right side and get that taken care of as soon as possible. The left side we will watch very carefully but after examining her I cannot feel or even sense the suspected mass on the left side. Your breasts are very dense and it may simply be a fatty build up that does not warrent attention. We will still watch it very carefully however. Also, I do not feel any swelling or lumps in the lymph nodes at this time. So we will isolate the sentinel nodes during surgery only. If they are clear I will leave the rest of them alone. If they show any sign of cancer I will remove them all during surgery.

Given your physical condition and the location of the mass--which is directly behind the nipple, you are not a candidate for a lumpectomy and radiation therapy. I suggest we do a full mastectomy. I know this may sound extreme but I do not think you will do well with radiation which would require you to lie on your stomach for extended periods of time.

At this point we headed into another office where a woman named Christina went about scheduling Mom for a PET-CT scan and Pre-Admission testing as well as the actual surgery. She was struggling with the folks at NYU Medical Center who simply didn't want to accommodate Mom because of the holiday weekend. As we were wisked off to another floor for the biopsy she said, "I know what is best for you and I will take care of it."

We got upstairs to another floor, filled out more paperwork for insurance purposes, and we taken to an exam room. The doctor who arrived to do the biopsy....oy! Not nice--all business. Russian Jew who still spoke in broken English even though it was clear she has been in this country for the last 25 years. Mom was PISSED!!!! And she was in agony and she did what she NEVER, EVER, EVER does...she started to cry. But please note, she did this behind the back of the doctor and just before the doctor turned to face her she wiped her face and would NOT give the woman the satisfaction of knowing she made her cry. (..and at her worse, Mom is still the tough NY broad she was born and raised as.)

While we waited for the biopsy doctor to return, my cousin Patty showed up with bagels and corn muffins. She just barged right in like she owned the place....oh wait, that's right, she does--she's married to Joe.....go back and read about the cousin who is the Professor and Vice Chairman at NYU. The biopsy doctor returned and confirmed what we all suspected: Cancer.

We went back downstairs, with Patty and food in tow, to Dr. Hiotis's office. Christina had booked us for Tuesday, July 8th for ALL the testing and for surgery on Tuesday, July 15th. I had my "orders" to call Mom's doctors at home and prepare them to watch for the faxed test results and a medical certification form. Surgery could not be performed without release forms from both her primary doctor and cardiologist.

Dr. Hiotis stopped by saving us a trip back down the hall to her office, again confirmed we were dealing with cancer and said, "I will see you on the 15th. After the surgery when you return for your post-op appointment we'll have a pathology report and we can move forward from there with a plan."

I don't like no knowing what we're dealing with but I understand--if the cancer is contained it means one thing; if the lymph nodes show signs of cancer it means something completely different. Only pathology can confirm the next step.

We got back in the car--the driver seat has completely molded to my ass at this point--and headed back to Delaware. And by the time I got home I finally hit the exhausted point.

And now we wait. We wait a week for the next step.