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You were diagnosed with breast cancer. Now what?

You don't need to understand everything today. You only need to understand what comes next for you.

Start with the part you need today. Leave the rest for later.

Seriously. You can come back.

PATHOLOGY.RECEPTORS.STAGES.SCANS.TREATMENTS. There are a lot of new words. We'll translate.

First things first

Two hands linked in a pinky promise — Photo via Unsplash

Nobody expects you to already know how to do this.

A breast cancer diagnosis can turn your life into a language you never asked to learn.

Suddenly there are pathology reports, receptors, scans, surgeons, treatment plans and appointments. People start saying words you've never heard before and asking questions you didn't know you'd need to answer.

Babette is here to help you understand what you're hearing, what your doctors are talking about and what questions you may want to ask next.

One thing at a time.

A body can look different and still belong to you.

A note from Babette

You can be scared and still ask good questions.

You don't have to become an expert in breast cancer. You need enough information to understand your own care and participate in the decisions that belong to you.

Choose where you are

What do you need right now?

01 Understand what they just told you.Stage, grade, receptors, HER2, pathology reports and all the words everyone suddenly expects you to understand. 02 Figure out what happens next.The appointments, tests, specialists and conversations that can happen between diagnosis and a treatment plan. 03 Prepare for the decisions.Surgery, reconstruction, chemotherapy, radiation, endocrine therapy and the questions worth asking before you decide. 04 Get your life organized.Work, insurance, money, appointments, records, caregivers and the administrative side of cancer nobody warns you about. 05 Take care of the human part.Fear, relationships, sex, your body, family, identity and everything that doesn't fit neatly into a treatment plan.

You are allowed to ask why.

Why this test?
Why this treatment?
Why now?
What are the alternatives?
What information are we still waiting for?

Understanding the recommendation is part of participating in the decision.

If you're overwhelmed

Start with the next appointment.

Open a note on your phone. You don't need fifty questions. Start with these.

What exactly do we know about my diagnosis right now?
What information are we still waiting for?
What decision, if any, do I need to make next?
How soon does that decision need to be made?
What happens after this appointment?

Save this page.

Come back when you need the next part. You do not need to absorb an entire cancer education in one afternoon.

And then there's real life

Your life didn't disappear when cancer showed up.

There is still your body. Your relationships. Your clothes. Your work. Your sex life. Your family. Your confidence. Your plans. The ordinary things that suddenly don't feel ordinary at all.

We talk about those things here, too.

LIFE AFTER DIAGNOSIS IS STILL LIFE.

Babette

Nobody hands you a manual after diagnosis. We're working on that.

Join Babette for clear explanations, useful questions, honest conversations and everything after the diagnosis.

Join Babette