What to Expect After a Breast Cancer Diagnosis: Your Surgical Team & First Decisions

Dr. Judy Tjoe and nurse practitioner Mikayla Petzke share how they help breast cancer patients understand their options, process complex information, and feel supported from diagnosis through surgery and beyond.

Advanced practice providers play an essential role in helping patients move from diagnosis to treatment with clarity and support. In this episode of Cancer Covered, breast surgical oncologist Dr. Judy Tjoe and nurse practitioner Mikayla Petzke of Green Bay Oncology explain how they work together to guide patients through the early stages of a breast cancer diagnosis and surgical decision-making, helping patients understand their options, process complex information and feel supported from the first phone call through survivorship care.

“Our goal is to minimize the amount of time that the patient feels alone to navigate this new cancer diagnosis.”
— Dr. Judy Tjoe

On this episode of Cancer Covered, you’ll learn:

  • How a breast surgical oncologist and nurse practitioner partner to support patients from diagnosis through surgery and follow-up care
  • Why early outreach after diagnosis helps patients feel more confident and prepared for their first consultation
  • How informed shared decision making helps patients choose between surgical options that are medically equivalent
  • What role support people play during consultations and why they’re included from the very beginning
  • How advanced practice providers can help patients process information and questions after the surgeon leaves the room

Mikayla and Dr. Tjoe bring up the illustrations that Dr. Tjoe does with patients to help explain their cancer diagnosis and what it means for their treatment options. Here are some real examples of what those illustrations look like:

If you liked learning about how Dr. Tjoe and Mikayla work together in caring for breast cancer patients, you may also like:

We’ve Got Cancer…Covered.

Thanks for tuning into this week’s Cancer Covered with Green Bay Oncology episode. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review wherever you get your podcasts.

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