Waiting for a biopsy to be scheduled and getting a little nuts! I mean, WTF?

[UpandDownPrincess]

Hey everyone!

I just needed to vent somewhere and figured this is as good a place as any.

I had a suspicious spot on my annual mammogram and on the follow-up, so now I'm waiting for the scheduler to call me and get me on the calendar for a biopsy. And she's not calling, They told me on Thursday morning that they'd call to schedule and I'm still waiting. They've already hinted that it might be weeks before I can get in.

Honestly, what the absolute fuck kind of hell is this?

I have a positive family history (my sister died of metastatic breast cancer when she was still in her 40s) and our whole family carries the ATM gene variant.

By all means, assholes, take your fucking time...

I am captive in my house waiting for the phone to ring, I am not telling anyone (except my husband) because they will all freak right the fuck out due to the situation with my sister. I can't seem to think of anything else and it's driving me crazy - not a far trip for me!

I know that staffing levels are low because of COVID and that healthcare folks are taxed out. I know that, I do. But there are few words as terrifying in the medical canon than biopsy. Just fucking call already.

Sorry for the language - I'm usually much better on here, but I'm just really freaking out.

 

[FuneralCry]

That sounds very frustrating. I understand why you would be annoyed. I wish you the best.

 

[Noctis]

I'm sorry that you're having to go through this. I haven't had a scare like that, so I can't imagine what you're going through.

I will say that the people who promised a call within a week are not the people who are going to call. I was in healthcare for 12 years (before COVID convinced me to leave). The entire system is fucked, even before a pandemic crippled everything. Receptionists and call centers would make huge promises, because they like giving out good news. Then the people wearing scrubs and running the tests on blood, shit, piss, and dead skin get yelled at because we didn't deliver what Sandra promised... even though Sandra lives in a different state and has never been to our lab. But Sandra knows you have no way of finding her and yelling at her. She knows you're going to yell at me. Sandra does not care. Sandra is terrible.

I know it's not much to say "Keep your chin up, champ! They'll get to you!" But try not to yell at anyone when they finally get around to doing anything. The techs there are already very likely going home and wondering if they should get drunk so they can go to sleep early, or if they should commit suicide.

 

[Wrennie]

Hey everyone!

I just needed to vent somewhere and figured this is as good a place as any.

I had a suspicious spot on my annual mammogram and on the follow-up, so now I'm waiting for the scheduler to call me and get me on the calendar for a biopsy. And she's not calling, They told me on Thursday morning that they'd call to schedule and I'm still waiting. They've already hinted that it might be weeks before I can get in.

Honestly, what the absolute fuck kind of hell is this?

I have a positive family history (my sister died of metastatic breast cancer when she was still in her 40s) and our whole family carries the ATM gene variant.

By all means, assholes, take your fucking time...

I am captive in my house waiting for the phone to ring, I am not telling anyone (except my husband) because they will all freak right the fuck out due to the situation with my sister. I can't seem to think of anything else and it's driving me crazy - not a far trip for me!

I know that staffing levels are low because of COVID and that healthcare folks are taxed out. I know that, I do. But there are few words as terrifying in the medical canon than biopsy. Just fucking call already.

Sorry for the language - I'm usually much better on here, but I'm just really freaking out.

I had to wait months just to get an appointment with a neurologist while I was being actively paralyzed by motor neuron disease that requires a specific immunosuppressive drug to stave off. Then private insurance refused to cover it, so I had to switch to Medicaid and wait even longer. Now, even after going to all that effort, my new neurologist won't prescribe the drug I need because he doesn't believe it's necessary (despite multiple other neurologists I've consulted agreeing it's imperative that I receive this treatment, and I can't switch over to them because Medicaid only covers 'in network' doctors).

Modern medicine is a hellhole and they make it so that you can't get sick, ever. The unfortunate reality is that for those of us with complex issues that go beyond that of a stubbed toe, they'll leave us to rot and die without batting an eye. It's a truly vile system.

So sorry you're having to deal with this bullshit as well. I wouldn't wish it on anyone.

 

[TooConscious]

Nhs?
You can except a 4 year waiting list.
I'm barely even exaggerating.
Most doctors will sit on life changing results out of idleness. They are cherry picking easy cases they are familiar with personally to get their wage not caring about the consequences of not referring the patient. It's the come a institution of psychopaths because theyve been so underfunded and stretched. Not many good left and the ones who do have compassion I really feel for.
Good luck. I'm riddled with disease and got no help other than ruining my life.

 

[UpandDownPrincess]

The part that frustrates me so much is that I used to be a scheduler for a 5-man surgical firm.

If I left a patient hanging like this, I would have been fired, and rightly so.

Today has come and gone with nothing - not from the primary care physician, not from the radiologist and not from the breast center. It's so hard not to get stressed.

 

[Ankou]

In my experience ridiculous wait times gets sped up if you phone the clinic every few days. They'll get so sick of you calling they'll bend backwards to get you sorted asap

 

[UpandDownPrincess]

Called today - one week after they told me they'd be calling and finally got scheduled for 2 weeks from now.

They are now scheduling one week later than when I started this little rabbit hole adventure.

The young woman on the other end of the phone acted like she was doing me a big favor. Fuck her. As angry as I am, I wouldn't wish this on anyone. Why we can't come up with a better system for dealing with breast cancer diagnoses and treatment, I'll never understand.

 

[Angst Filled Fuck Up]

I totally understand. Medical scheduling is an absolute nightmare and they just do NOT call back or help you out in any way. I don't understand it at all. Especially when it comes to something like a potentially malignant tumor, they just sit on their asses and chill when time is obviously of the essence.

I am so sorry for your situation and hope this all turns out okay. At least you were proactive enough to have a mammogram done and stay on top of things. If anything is going on, it sounds like you at least caught it early. Good luck to you.