BEFORE THE OPERATION ON BREAST CANCER: VISIT BY A DOCTOR

Posted by admin on April 22, 2009 under Cancer | Be the First to Comment

A house surgeon or senior house officer will visit you on the ward before your operation to take details of your medical history – including any allergies you may have and any drugs you are taking – and to examine you. Your GP may have already filled in a form giving the names and dosages of any drugs you have been prescribed, and you should have been told what to do about these. Do not forget to tell the hospital doctor of any other drugs you have been taking which your GP may not be aware of, such as vitamin supplements, cough medicines, aspirins etc., which are available from the chemist without the need for prescription.

If you normally take a contraceptive pill or hormone replacement tablets, you may have been told to stop these for a time before your operation. If you are still taking them when you enter hospital, for example if you have been called for your operation at short notice, you should tell the doctor. Contraceptive pills used to contain much larger amounts of hormones than do the more modern ones, and these were sometimes associated with complications from blood clots. The newer pills are almost entirely free from these risks, but some surgeons still prefer their patients to stop taking them for at least a month before surgery.

A medical examination is carried out to identify any illness or infection you may have which could complicate the use of a general anesthetic. If you are over 50 years of age or a heavy smoker, you will probably have to have a chest X-ray and an electrocardiogram so that any potential anesthetic complications due to breathing or heart problems can be picked up.

If you are having a lump removed from your breast, the doctor will try to locate it and will mark the appropriate area on the surface of your breast with an indelible felt-tip pen. If the entire breast is to be removed, the appropriate one will be identified in the same way.

Consent forms

The house surgeon will probably also ask you to sign a consent form. Although it can be assumed that your consent to the operation is implied by the fact that you have entered hospital willingly, consent forms are widely used. By signing this form you are declaring that your operation has been explained to you and that you understand what it entails and have agreed to it taking place. You are also giving your permission for the doctors to take whatever action they feel to be appropriate should some emergency occur during your operation, and for any necessary anesthetic to be given to you. Do read this form carefully, and ask the doctor to explain anything you do not understand.

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