Cancer Treatment

[TexasMommaWithAHat]

29. I've never heard of that happening to anyone

especially with insurance! And I haven't heard any stories like that from my survivor friends, either. (Yeah, I know lots of horror stories, but not like your friend's. And her situation seems to be moving very fast.)

I was treated using BC/BS as my insurance provider, and nothing like that ever remotely happened to me. (I did have problems with a disputed lab bill much later, but that's another story. )

First off, I would be hesitant about how very quickly things are moving. Yes, you don't want to wait unnecessarily, but taking a week to get another opinion, waiting for lab results that tell you more about the nature of the cancer, etc....this all takes time.

Normally, something suspicious is found in a mammogram or your physician finds something suspicious through a physical exam. "This could be cancer."

Next, a biopsy is ordered. The results of that biopsy will tell you if you have cancer, and likely what kind of cancer it is. "You have cancer."

Then, surgery is usually scheduled, but not always, depending on the type of cancer. The cancer is then staged. The aggressive nature of the cancer cells and the size and location of the tumor will determine the stage. More lab tests.

It is only at that that point, will an oncologist determine the appropriate course of action in consultation with the patient and, perhaps, with the surgeon or any other doctors deemed appropriate.

Even after all of that, no one sat me down and gave me a monetary amount. I had insurance, and that was that. Down the road there was a stupid paperwork error which caused weeks of fighting with the insurance company to pay the bill, but in the end the lab used the wrong code! arggghhhh

Does your friend live in a small town? Does she have other options? Something doesn't seem right.