Hello, my name is Freddy

[Freddy]

I am not good at writing English as I was born & raised in Belgium. I have stage 1 lung cancer and am waiting for a needle biopsy to be scheduled.

I would like some support but cannot write well. I live in California.

[Robert A.]

Hello Freddy, My wife had a needle biopsy in October, here is what she said took place. The Doctor and tech use a CT scan to guide the needle to the area where the biopsy is to be done, this is done under local anesthesia. You will be scanned the needle inserted part ways then scanned several times to make sure the needle is in the right area that they want a biopsy of. After the biopsy is taken you will be under observation because there are risks one of which is a collapsed lung. You will get further x rays in the recovery room ( that was our case) because the hospital had a portable x ray unit. Once you are stable you will be released. My wife's test took about 6 hours. I hope this helps and may not be the same way others have had theirs biopsies done.

[Curt]

Hi Freddy.  I’m sorry to hear about your diagnosis.  I’m glad you found this site.  It is a good place for support.  Robert has given some good info on a needle biopsy.  Stage 1 is very early and very treatable.  Hang in there.  

[Lisa66]

Hi Freddy, I just had needle biopsy yesterday. The procedure itself only last for about 30 minutes, but they kept you 3 to 4 hours to make sure there are no complications. You will be put in a ct scan, looks like a donought and they take pics while asking you not to breath. The dr will insert a needle, you will feel some pressure, but no real pain, plus they give you some really nice meds in your IV that helps with nerves. I also felt slight pinches as they took biopsy, but no horrible pain. And it’s really quick. You will be out eating a sandwich in no time. Worst is hanging around so long. Best of luck to you. Stage one is good. Should be very treatable.

Prayers

Lisa

[BridgetO]

Hi Freddy and welcome.  I had Stage 1a non-small-cell lung cancer. (NSCLC) .They couldn't do a needle biopsy because of its .location. e I had a lobectomy by VATS (video assisted surgery, and  didn't have a confirmed diagnosis until after the surgery. Stage 1 NSCLC is usually easy to treat. I didn't need anything other than the surgery. It was 3 years ago. I now have a yearly CT scan. I have no evidence of disease (NED). 

 Tell us what we can do to support you. Do you have questions? Do you need to hear from other people with sucessful treatment? Don't worry about your writing. It sounds fine. If you get stuck, write in your first language and either someone will be able to read it or we can use Google Translate. We have an Italian member who does that. By the way,, are you from the French-speaking or the Flemish-speaking part of Belgium?

Bridget O

[LUNGevityKristin]

Hi Freddy.  If you would like to be connected to someone you can talk with on the phone, LUNGevity has a peer-to-peer program.  Here is information about LifeLine: https://lungevity.org/for-patients-caregivers/support-services/peer-to-peer-mentoring/lungevity-lifeline

[LouT]

Freddy,

I don't have much to add to what my friends have already offered you regarding the scan.  But, once you have it and get your results we'd love to hear back from you on how it went and what they found.

Lou

[Freddy]

Had biopsy; non-small cell. PET scan is on the 28th, oncologist appt on the 31st

[Curt]

The process of getting a definitive diagnosis is slow with lung cancer.   Are they doing any genetic testing?   Knowing if you have any specific mutations helps with deciding on targeted therapies most affective against those mutations.  There are lots of treatment options. Hang in there.