Paul and I are finding ourselves at another "fork in the road" related to my treatment. We both have had the nagging feeling that we need to do more... research more... for my treatment. We talked about this at lunch today, and we are moving forward.
We trust my oncologist, but we also realize he is not a breast cancer specialist; nor does he specialize in triple negative breast cancer. There are doctors in the field who are that specialized, and we're to the point where we want to see one of them. If only to confirm that the course of treatment that I am currently on is a good one for me.
Seeking a second opinion makes me feel disloyal to my current oncologist. It worries me that it will strain the relationship that we have with him, and I don't want that. But, it is reckless to ignore that doctors specialize in my specific kind of cancer. To have access to them and to not pursue them would be unbearable if my cancer progresses.
So... the name that keeps coming to mind is Dr. Kathy Miller, at the IU Med Center in Indianapolis. She has extensively written/researched triple negative breast cancer. My current oncologist actually referenced one of her studies as rationale for the chemotherapy that I am using now. And, conveniently, her office is within a couple of hours of my parent's house in Indiana.
So, after lunch I got on the internet and found the telephone number for the IU Med Center Oncology office. I asked if anyone in their office specialized in triple negative breast cancer, and I was stunned to hear her say it would be Kathy Miller and that I could set up a consultation -- I thought for sure that Dr. Miller would be "too high up" to take on new patients. But, her nurse is supposed to be calling me back to take a history and set up the next step. Every time the phone rings I have jumped at it, just like a teenager!
It boggles my mind that the potential for expert opinion on my case has been only a phone call away.... That I made the idea of calling another doctor something so "big" in my mind that I wasn't even sure how to do it. I guess in a way, this phone call was a little bit of "water walking" for me -- I wasn't sure I could do it, but God has at least made the path a straight one for me: to know about this doctor, and to have her specifically recommended to me after the first phone call -- the road does not get any straighter than that.
I'll write again once I hear back from her office and know more. Please continue to pray for direction and wisdom. I think this is a potential turning point for my treatment.
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