Breast Cancer, Metastatic Or Recurrent: When To Call A Doctor

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When To Call a Doctor

You will have regularly scheduled follow-up visits with your doctor after you are treated for breast cancer. Some women with metastatic or recurrent breast cancer do not have any symptoms. This cancer is discovered on an X-ray or through other tests before symptoms appear.

When symptoms occur, they depend on the part of the body affected by the breast cancer. Call your family doctor, medical oncologist, radiation oncologist, or surgeon if you have any symptoms that last for more than 1 to 2 weeks, including:

• A lump or sore in your breast or on your chest wall.
• Swelling in the armpit or neck.
• Swelling of the arm.
• Bone pain, especially in the back or hips.
• Shortness of breath or a cough.
• Loss of appetite.
• Extreme tiredness.
• Nausea or vomiting.
• Recurrent headaches.

Watchful Waiting

There is no watchful waiting for metastatic breast cancer. A focus on symptom control may be considered if your breast cancer is so advanced that available treatment is not likely to improve your quality of life or survival time. You may receive treatment to control other symptoms, such as pain. Discuss your situation with your doctor to determine whether a focus on symptom control may be right for you.

Who To See

If you have received treatment for breast cancer, health professionals who can evaluate new problems include a:

• Medical oncologist.
• Radiation oncologist.
• Surgeon.
• Family medicine doctor.

To prepare for your appointment, see the topic Making the Most of Your Appointment.

Last updated:	August 31, 2007
Author:	Kathe Gallagher, MSW
Reviewed By:	Joy Melnikow, MD, MPH - Family Medicine, Douglas A. Stewart, MD - Medical Oncology
Editors:	Cynthia Tank, Pat Truman, MATC