i am very concerned by the way ive been given biopsys,breast, and an endometrial biopsy without being given any pain meds at all. and the day of my masectomy i had dye injected into my breast im guessing so the surgeon could see the tumor or nodes involved. anyways, this dr put the needle into my AEREOLA with no pain meds. i screamed and then ,he pushed down HARD on my breast to make sure the dye got into my body. what kind of a monster would do this? we treat animals better, im guessing cause they will bite. id like this dr to stick a needle in his most sensitive private part with no pain meds. ive heard alot of women saying they are not given pain meds also. maybe the drs should do it to themselves, or their wives or daughters.............. it would never happen. im scared to death having had cancer, but the treatment was actually WORSE. i fainted from my breast biopsy. my husband almost cried when he saw me come out, he said i looked very sick, white as a sheet and just awful. why is this happening?????????????????/
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Q: stupidity of drs
Nanette,
My doctors have always given me a local anesthetic even for punch biopsies. I don't know about the dye injection. I don't think I've had that done.
I would suggest that if you ever need another biopsy or other test that might be painful, that you discuss it with the doctor before you arrive for the test. Let him know as calmly as possible (without suggesting blame) that you have had problems with previous medical procedures and that you would like to know what the options are for preventing pain are.
Naneete, I sympathize with you totally. I've had my own share of bad doctors who didn't listen, didn't explain things and downright insensitive. When I found out i had breast cancer my doctor told me, handed me a tissue and walked out on me. I was told after chasing him down that my lumpectomy didn't have clear margins and I would need a mastectomy on Tuesday - it was a Thursday when I was told this. When i woke up in the hospital I was in excruciating pain cause they never told me I was getting a modified radical mastectomy. I cried in pain for 3 hours and it nearly took an act of god to get the right pain meds. I have a low tolerance for pain, but a high tolerance for pain meds due to other surgeries I'd had. Demural didn't work for me, yet they were reluctant to give me morphine. I finally got things feeling better once I called my ins. co. who called the hospital and demanded a switch. My second day in the hospital the assistant surgeon came in and when I told him I was still in pain he told me to buck up it didn't hurt that bad, I didn't need the morphine and in the morning I was being released regardless. In that moment I would have knocked him upside his head had it not been for the pain. I started having panic attacks because he upset me so much. Once I got home they didn't want to give me pain meds for longer than 2 weeks though I still had my drain tubes and staples - also the doctor admitted he caused nerve damage to my arm, so not only did I have severe lymphedema, I couldn't extend my arm straight or above my head.
I've learned since then to be direct with doctors - and if they don't listen to what I say, cause I know my body better than anyone else - then I'd leave and find another doctor that had some bedside manners. I tell them upfront I have no tolerance for pain and horrid anxiety regarding certain procedures. I'm very selective of who I will let put an IV in, I demand the numbing stuff, I will not let anyone stick me more than twice - usually on the anestesologist will start the IV after I've been knocked out cause no one else can hit a vein. I refuse to be tortured and I let it be known. A good doctor knows your concerns and works with you to prevent pain. So take a stance - because my motto is just because they go to school and know how to treat something does not mean they know what it feels like, nor do they know your body better than yourself. So don't be afraid to be firm with your doctor. You'll thank yourself for it.
I hope all your future test go better for you!
Angi
Nanette,
I, too, had the dye injection on Dec 22, followed by wire insertions to assist the doctors with location of 3 tumors to be removed during a lumpectomy. Luckily for me, the doctors I had were great. I had a local for the dye injection and also for the wire insertion. I am a nurse by trade. You have the right, as a patient, to ask questions and expect truthful answers. You also have the right to request alternate methods, in which some are less painful. You have the right to ask for local anesthetics when appropriate. If at any point you feel a doctor or any health professional is treating you less than the person you are, please feel free to report them to the administrator of their institution. You will not only be standing up for yourself, but all others that follow you. The diagnosis of breast cancer is a new journey for me. I was informed on Dec 11th of the new path before me. Please know that I did not, and will not, receive special treatment becasue of my occupation. I am seeking treatment at a facility outside of where I work, although I work at a hospital that has one of the best reputaions for cancer treatment and research in the US. Please know there are always other doctors and other institutions that can help. May God bless you and all others.
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