I have been waiting for 3 weeks since a needle biopsy to find out what I have.
I called the Doctor 7 days ago, that I have not heard anything. He said the pathologist
from Stuart, Fl. had sent it to Tenn. and from there it had gone to New York.
That it was rare. Papilloma?
Hi - There are about 14 sub-types of breast cancer, with four of them quite common; another two occurring fairly regularly; and the other eight, I'd guess, quite rare. The journey of your biopsy from Florida to Tennessee to New York sounds highly irregular; I'd try to nail the doctor down, tell him you're feeling quite stressed, and you want to know what the preliminary diagnosis is, where the sample has gone specifically, and when you should expect to hear the final results.
It's hard to stand up for yourself sometimes, but it looks to me like you might be getting shuffled around; so be a squeaky wheel, and see if it helps the situation along. Three weeks is a reidiculous length of time to wait for biopsy results. One more thing - some of the rarer types are actually easier to treat than the more common types, so don't automatically assume rare = bad, OK? Good luck - PJH
This research article has information about rare types of breast cancer including two types of papilloma. I had a similar situation with my biopsy for another relatively rare type of breast cancer--inflammatory breast cancer. The pathologists sent it out for a second opinion. It's good that your pathologists are getting a second opinion. Successful treatment of any kind of cancer depends on an accurate diagnosis. Because it's been a week since you were told that the tissue had been sent out, it's time to call back and ask for an update.
Another rare cancer of the breast is Angiosarcoma. It takes some hospitals weeks to figure out that diagnosis but others shorter amounts of time. My biopsy was sent to 4 different hospitals for confirmation. Good luck, make sure they get the right diagnosis!
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