Need advice

[KEC]

Hi everybody,
I was diagnosed with invasive adenocarcinoma 2 weeks ago. The local doctors were starting to make arrangements for surgery. Last April, I had a mastectomy for BC one new and one a recurrence. I went to Moffit for it. After reading on here I decided to go to Moffitt. I can't get an appointment until Sept 20.
I have plane tickets for a long awaited trip to visit family .
Here's my dilemma
Is it better to wai for the later appt, or should. Have hurried to surgery?

[Basil]

That sounds like a question you should ask your doctor (and I know that's not a helpful answer). Have you had a cr or mri? I'd would be (and was) pretty much nonfunctional until I had initial scans and staging and had a plan in place. I could never wait over two months before getting started. I could only wait that long if a trusted onc told me I would not be increasing risk by waiting. I had a picc line installed so I could start chemo a week earlier (before having a port placed) because the wait was killing me.

[KEC]

Thank you for answering, To clarify, our local hospital is known for infections, and I've had sepsis there in the past twice. Daughter was misdiagnosed there and ended up going to Tampa in intensive care and on a transplant list. So I am nervous about having surgery there. Moffitt is number six in nation for cancer care. I have already had Hodgkin's lymphoma and breast cancer twice so I want someone who knows what they're doing. You only have one chance.
I did not gave any cat scans blood work or anything other than a colonoscopy. Moffitt is supposed to call me in attempt to move the appt sooner.
I want to get this out quickly, but feel much better about Moffitt as a facility.
The doctor only said it was invasive adenocarcinoma. What a dilemma.
What is the normal time period from day of diagnosis to surgery? I see a lot of push for second opinions, but those indeed take time!
Thanks again!

[Maelleous]

Moffit is very good. I got a second opinion from them and live close by (2.5h). Typically colon and rectal cancer is a slow grower... so I personally would rather go to the big institute to make sure I received the best possible care. That is a long wait though. I had a non-agressive form. I had symptoms in February of last year and didn't get a colonoscopy until August. I got results in September and surgery at the end of October... so my wait was even longer than yours I think.

You could also look into Cleveland Clinic Florida. They are a couple hours south of Tampa and where I got my surgeries after talking to both. Cleveland Clinic is usually very fast and seems to be able to get you in very quickly compared to a lot of other places. We are only a month away now though, so you may no be able to get in faster. Dr. Weiss has done both my stage 3C cancer surgery and my reversal. He has the personality of a stone, but is one of the highest ranked surgeons for colorectal out there and obviously did a fantastic job or I wouldn't be cancer free today. Cleveland Clinic is ranked #8 in the nation and is one of the highest ranked for colorectal care. Their hospital is very nice and I could not recommend them enough.