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"Breast Care Unit"

About: King's Mill Hospital

I was called for a routine mammogram, which went very smoothly & efficiently. Early the following following week I received a recall letter, with information about how, statistically, only 20% of those recalled would go on to further treatment. The letter went on to say that my appointment, for the Thursday of that week, would be for a minimum 2 hours & that I would be seen by a Consultant Surgeon & Radiographer. I was very concerned & convinced that I had cancer. I went along on the Thursday & was given an ultrasound, which was unable to detect the abnormality shown by the mammogram, so was given another mammogram, which did pick up the problem, & a biopsy was taken, which was not very pleasant, but bearable. I cannot emphasise enough how kind & considerate every member of the Breast Care Team was, reassuring me & explaining every step of the procedure, even holding my hand. I was told to expect a letter giving me an appointment for the following Thursday (today). At today's appointment there was a bit of a wait, but this was forgotten when the Doctor told me that it was good news & that the biopsy was normal. I was so happy. One hears so many horror stories about the hospital, but, though it was a worrying time for me, I felt totally confident in the care I was afforded & thank everyone on the Team very much. One hears so many negative stories that I felt I had to tell you of my very positive experience. Even had the result been different, I still had faith that I would be given the very best of care. I would, however, like to make a suggestion about the initial recall letter. It read "you will have a 2 hour plus appointment" &" you will see a Consultant Surgeon & Radiographer" I managed to read so much between the lines that I scared myself half to death, In the event, my appointment lasted for less than an hour & although I saw a Radiographer, I did not see a Surgeon, nor did I need to. Because it said "will" I immediately jumped to the wrong conclusion. Perhaps if the letter were altered to say "may" I would have believed I had a chance of being one of the 80% who did not need further treatment. Rewording the letter would help to allay fears at the outset. Despite this I still hold the Breast Care Team in the highest regard. Thanks again.

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Responses

Response from King's Mill Hospital 9 years ago
King's Mill Hospital
Submitted on 13/10/2014 at 09:46
Published on nhs.uk on 14/10/2014 at 04:00


Thank you for your feedback, we are certain that the breast unit team will be happy to hear that they had made your visit such a positive one. We have also shared your thoughts about the wording of the letter and have asked for it to be reviewed. Thank you once again for taking the time to post your comments on this site.

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