First oncology appointment.

Make sure to ask questions and take a notebook to write down anything you don't understand for later so you can look it up or ask questions of your BC nurse wishing you the best

If by, "first appointment" you are referring to chemo, this is how they do things at the hospital I am with: 

The first time you come in, a senior nurse takes you to a side room, asks some questions to verify their information, takes swabs for Covid and MRSA, and explains how their system works. If you are also due to have chemo on that day, she then takes you to the treatment room where you meet the nurse who would be looking after you, shown to a comfortable chair that you can adjust, and once you are settled in, they take your blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen saturation level, and temperature. Once all that is out of the way, it's time to get the cannula in place (unless you have a picc line.) The nurses then verify that the dose they are about to give is the one prepared for you and that the quantities and the drug is as prescribed. Then, it's several minutes of just fluids to make sure all is going well, then the drug is given, then again fluids to flush. The rate at which drugs are given differs depending on the drug and on the patient. 

Next time you come in you go straight to the treatment room once called in.

Bring something with you to do, a book, a mobile device with content that will keep you busy. I always took a bottle of water with me too, and if you think you might get hungry, bring some snacks.

My first oncology appointment was pretty positive. I was given the results of the CT body scan, which was clear, and then taken through what would happen throughout chemo in a lot of detail. I took a notebook and wrote down everything. There was tonnes of info from what the drugs would do to side effects, what would help relieve them, what I needed to have in the house, what I couldn't eat, when to call the cancer phone line...

My oncologist was fantastic and it was quite a long appointment where I was able to ask a lot of questions. I had written some down beforehand which helped. 

I also got given a choice of hormone drug to go on to and we talked through that in detail top so that I could make an informed choice. 

My appointment letter just says that's its for me to see the consultant in clinical oncology. Whereas my previous letter said they have asked for markers to be put in ready for chemo. So I have no idea what to expect. Im anxious that they will do tests which will show something worse, whereas if I knew it was just to tell me what was happening next, I could relax a bit. I really don't like this waiting around part. I feel like every slight feeling in my body is cancer growing and there is nothing I can do about it. 

Your first oncology appointment will be for the dr to outline what regime you will be on and for how long. They will go through any side effects and explain how you're likely to feel. You'll be weighed and measured as that's how they determine what quantity of chemo you have. You'll also have to sign a consent form.

At my trust I went back just before my first chemo and had bp taken, bloods and was given  a quick tour of the chemo unit - bit like a pre-assessment. 

I didn't see my oncologist again until we met to discuss radiotherapy. I had 3 weekly reviews with a specialist nurse via telephone to talk about how I was, side effects etc.

I think different trusts do things very differently. 

I've just finished 12 rounds of chemo (over 19 weeks) and it honestly it's as terrifying as you think. 

Good luck 

Hello Matilda, my first oncology appointment was the same as Jacala's. The oncologist explained the type of chemo I was going to be given and for how long, gave details of possible side effects and I was asked to sign consent forms. Bear in mind that the oncologist has to make patients aware of all potential side effects for that specific type of chemo before obtaining consent but if you do get any adverse side effects during chemo then you will be given medication such as anti-sickness pills to manage these. Hearing about all of the potential side effects can be frightening but bear in mind that you are very unlikely to get all of these.

There were not any tests performed at my oncologist meeting although I did get sent for a heart scan a week or so later prior to the chemo starting, but that was just to make sure that there were no problems heart wise prior to starting as the particular chemo I was given can effect the heart.  At your meeting ask the oncologist if you need to have any more tests before chemo starts, to help put your mind at rest if you are worried. If they need to put markers in the oncologist won't be doing this this so check with your breast nurse about when this will be done if you haven't been given a date. This initial stage prior to treatment starting can be worrying, especially with lots of letters/appointments, but once you have a clear idea of what will be happening you will hopefully feel less anxious. Hope everything goes well x

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Thank you everyone. This site has so far been my life line over the last few weeks. It helps me put things into perspective when I read everyone's posts. I'm getting my head around the chemo at the moment. It's the waiting that's horrendous. I'm stuck in a loop of wanting to know more to help me rationalise what's happening and not wanting to know anything as its terrifying. 

Hi Matilda, I found that just taking a day at a time is the best way of dealing with everything. Initial treatment plans can change, mine did, so sometimes what you expect to happen doesn't, but your medical team will be tailoring your treatment to ensure that they do the best they can for you. It did seem at one point that every time I attended an appointment something had changed, and more bad news was given, and easier said than done but staying positive, rather than being anxious about things that you can't change or haven't experienced yet, really helps with getting through the treatment and recovery stages. The waiting is the worst part but once you've seen the oncologist you should have a better idea of when your chemo will be starting and it may seem terrifying at the moment but hopefully once you have been to the chemo unit and had your first chemo then things will seem less terrifying x

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Clinical oncology would normally get involved if radiotherapy is on the cards, whereas chemo is normally dealt with by medical oncology, although a clinical oncologist can do both. But, seeing you have not yet met the consultant, who delivered to you the diagnosis and the chemo treatment plan?