Selected Podcast
Breast Cancer – Your Personalized Treatment Plan
Dr. Rachel Jendro leads an informative discussion about the Bryan Health Multidisciplinary Clinic, and the personalized diagnosis and treatment plans their team offers to their patients.
Featured Speaker:
Dr. Jendro received her Medical Degree from the Kentucky College of Osteopathic Medicine. Her general surgery internship and residency were completed at Grandview Medical Center in Dayton, Ohio. Dr. Jendro is board certified by the American College of Osteopathic Surgeons. As an Osteopathic Surgeon, Dr. Jendro is committed to each patient’s journey with compassion and support.
H. Lee Moffit Cancer Center and Research Institute is where Dr. Jendro completed her breast surgical oncology fellowship in Tampa, Florida. She studied under Dr. Charles Cox, a renowned pioneer in breast surgery. As a physician and breast surgical oncology fellow, Dr. Jendro completed focused surgical training on benign and malignant breast disease.
For eight years, Dr. Jendro served as a breast surgical oncologist with UNC Rex Hospital. She was an integral part in developing the multidisciplinary breast conference where patients are presented for collaborative discussions between surgeons, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, radiologists, plastic surgeons, pathologists, genetic counselors, social workers, and clinical trials teams. She also served as the chair of the breast care committee at UNC Rex Hospital.
Dr. Jendro is the executive medical director of the Bryan Breast Cancer Multidisciplinary Clinic. At this clinic, cancer specialists from many areas work together to ensure the absolute best comprehensive plan of care for her breast patients. Dr. Jendro treats all benign and malignant breast disease. These include breast cancer, benign breast masses, breast cysts, breast pain, and nipple discharge. She also treats patients who are high risk for developing breast cancer due to family history and/or markers such as atypical hyperplasia. Dr. Jendro performs lumpectomies, mastectomies, nipple and skin sparing mastectomies, excisional biopsies, and ultrasound guided biopsies. She is certified in breast ultrasound by the American Society of Breast Surgeons. She is the first fellowship trained breast surgical oncologist in Lincoln.
Learn more about Rachel Jendro, DO, FACOS
Rachel Jendro, DO, FACOS, Bryan Breast Surgical Specialists
Dr. Rachel Jendro is originally from Eastern Kentucky. She attended the University of Kentucky where she played saxophone in the Wildcat Marching Band. Dr. Jendro graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor of science in Biology.Dr. Jendro received her Medical Degree from the Kentucky College of Osteopathic Medicine. Her general surgery internship and residency were completed at Grandview Medical Center in Dayton, Ohio. Dr. Jendro is board certified by the American College of Osteopathic Surgeons. As an Osteopathic Surgeon, Dr. Jendro is committed to each patient’s journey with compassion and support.
H. Lee Moffit Cancer Center and Research Institute is where Dr. Jendro completed her breast surgical oncology fellowship in Tampa, Florida. She studied under Dr. Charles Cox, a renowned pioneer in breast surgery. As a physician and breast surgical oncology fellow, Dr. Jendro completed focused surgical training on benign and malignant breast disease.
For eight years, Dr. Jendro served as a breast surgical oncologist with UNC Rex Hospital. She was an integral part in developing the multidisciplinary breast conference where patients are presented for collaborative discussions between surgeons, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, radiologists, plastic surgeons, pathologists, genetic counselors, social workers, and clinical trials teams. She also served as the chair of the breast care committee at UNC Rex Hospital.
Dr. Jendro is the executive medical director of the Bryan Breast Cancer Multidisciplinary Clinic. At this clinic, cancer specialists from many areas work together to ensure the absolute best comprehensive plan of care for her breast patients. Dr. Jendro treats all benign and malignant breast disease. These include breast cancer, benign breast masses, breast cysts, breast pain, and nipple discharge. She also treats patients who are high risk for developing breast cancer due to family history and/or markers such as atypical hyperplasia. Dr. Jendro performs lumpectomies, mastectomies, nipple and skin sparing mastectomies, excisional biopsies, and ultrasound guided biopsies. She is certified in breast ultrasound by the American Society of Breast Surgeons. She is the first fellowship trained breast surgical oncologist in Lincoln.
Learn more about Rachel Jendro, DO, FACOS
Transcription:
Melanie Cole (Host): Welcome to Bryan Health Podcast. I'm Melanie Cole. And joining me to discuss the multidisciplinary breast cancer clinic is Dr. Rachel Jendro. She's a breast surgical oncologist with Bryan Breast Surgical Specialists, a part of Bryan Health. Dr. Jendro, it's a pleasure to have you join us again today. So tell us a little bit about the process of someone getting diagnosed with breast cancer. What are women generally feeling when they receive this diagnosis? It's got to be pretty devastating and scary, and we don't know where to turn and what to do.
Dr Rachel Jendro: Thank you so much for having me on today. I am excited to tell everyone about the Bryan Breast Cancer Multidisciplinary Clinic. It is a very scary and anxiety-provoking time with this new diagnosis, and we never want patients to feel alone and we are here to take care of them.
Melanie Cole (Host): So then, let's talk about a multidisciplinary breast cancer clinic. Bryan has one, tell us how this helps women who are diagnosed with breast cancer. What are you finding are the largest benefits? What are your patients finding are the largest benefits?
Dr Rachel Jendro: During this appointment, the patient gets to come and meet with all providers involved in their cancer care. At the end of their appointment that morning, they will then have their individualized treatment plan made. This really prevents the patient from having to drive to multiple doctor's offices, which can delay their care.
Melanie Cole (Host): So Dr. Jendro, as we see improved coordination of care and the opportunity to assess each patient from many viewpoints, how exactly does a multidisciplinary clinic work with all the specialists involved? And while you're telling us that, given the complexity and with increasingly complex treatment algorithms that add new options to your armamentarium of available therapies, every day we're learning about new exciting things, who's in charge of guiding that patient care? Can you elaborate on the model itself?
Dr Rachel Jendro: When the patient presents for their appointment that day at the Bryan Breast Cancer Multidisciplinary Clinic, they will be checked in and then shown to their exam room. The patient will remain in that exam room for the duration of their appointment, and the providers will come to them individually. During their appointment that day, they will meet a breast surgical oncologist, a medical oncologist, a radiation oncologist and an oncology nurse navigator. By the end of that appointment, they really have their plan set. They will have all of our information to contact us as well. The oncology nurse navigator really becomes their point person if they have additional questions or need more detail after the appointment concludes. But they will always be able to contact us and we really just want them to feel very well taken care of.
Melanie Cole (Host): Well, that is certainly just the way of the future. Isn't it? That is really where medicine is headed to this multidisciplinary approach. So who should attend? When is it appropriate to seek this multidisciplinary breast cancer clinic? When a woman does get diagnosed, how does this process all work?
Dr Rachel Jendro: So any person diagnosed with breast cancer can attend this multidisciplinary clinic. A lot of times the referrals will come from their provider, but the patient can call as well. We do have an easy one number that will be provided to all primary care providers who could just call this one number and automatically get plugged in to this appointment. So we try to make it as easy as possible.
Melanie Cole (Host): What are your patients saying about it, Dr. Jendro?
Dr Rachel Jendro: The patient feedback has just been incredible. Patients really love that they see everybody in one morning. It really cuts down on their time. Patients have to take off of work for these appointments. They have to arrange for transportation. It's just so much easier for the patient to be able to get everything done in one morning.
A few things that may occur after this appointment is the patient may require additional imaging, such as a breast MRI. And we take care of scheduling that for them, the patient may choose to perform genetic testing and we would get that scheduled for them. So we really want to make sure just everything is taken care of and lined up and they just feel extremely just well taken care of.
Melanie Cole (Host): It does certainly sound like it. So how does the team support the woman through this process? Can you speak about the navigator involvement? Because they are some of the most important people in this process to the patient, because they're the one helping the patient directly navigate this dizzying world of a cancer diagnosis. So tell us a little bit about how that helps.
Dr Rachel Jendro: You know, it's a very overwhelming time and there's so much information coming in from these different specialties as to different options for care. When I sit with my patients, we'll draw pictures and write information down and explain their imaging, their pathology, their treatment options. So they come away with drawings and pictures and information. But it's just a lot, it's a lot to take in. We have three breast cancer navigators, oncology navigators who have years of experience in the field. And are just very knowledgeable about all aspects of patient care. The patient will have their phone number and their email, so they can always get a hold of the oncology nurse navigator and just really never feel like they're left out there, not knowing what's going on with their care. So we always have that access point for them.
Melanie Cole (Host): Isn't that so important, that if they need to reach out, they don't have to go through an admin tree? They can really just reach out directly through email. What a wonderful service that is. If someone has been diagnosed with breast cancer and wants to have this kind of team of cancer experts to provide treatment recommendations throughout the multidisciplinary clinic, tell us a little bit about what they should do and to whom they should turn right at the beginning.
Dr Rachel Jendro: We really want to make this an easy process for the patient to be able to connect with our breast cancer multidisciplinary clinic and for the primary care providers as well. We have one number that the patient or the provider can call. That number is (402) 481-7900, that's 7-9-0-0. That is the easy number to call to get the patient in and the appointment scheduled and everything taken care of.
Melanie Cole (Host): And if you had to give one piece of advice as the breast oncologist surgical specialist that you are, Jendro, what would you like to tell women about the importance of getting that mammogram, the fear of the unknown, if they are told that they need to come back or get a diagnostic mammogram, or if they are diagnosed with breast cancer, what is your best advice? What would you like them to know?
Dr Rachel Jendro: You know, breast cancers can be detected through mammogram and/or breast ultrasound. Sometimes these cancers can be detected on physical exam by the provider or the patient. When that new breast cancer diagnosis comes in, I really want the patients to know that we are here to take care of them. Most breast cancers now are found early in the early stage and they have an excellent prognosis. So it's such a scary time to hear that word, but just know that we can catch these early. That's why our mammograms are so important. We should start those mammograms at age 40 and get them every year. When these are found early, excellent prognosis. We will be right there with you walking through the journey and we can handle this and do it together.
Melanie Cole (Host): What a lovely sentiment. Thank you so much, Dr. Jendro. You're a great guest as always. Such a great educator you are. Thank you again for joining us. And thanks to our Bryan Foundation partner, Medica. If you are in need of the services of Bryan Health's Multidisciplinary Breast Cancer Clinic, please call (402) 481-7900 or you can head over to our website at bryanhealth.org/breast-cancer for more information and to get connected with one of our providers. That concludes this episode of Bryan Health Podcast. I'm Melanie Cole.
Melanie Cole (Host): Welcome to Bryan Health Podcast. I'm Melanie Cole. And joining me to discuss the multidisciplinary breast cancer clinic is Dr. Rachel Jendro. She's a breast surgical oncologist with Bryan Breast Surgical Specialists, a part of Bryan Health. Dr. Jendro, it's a pleasure to have you join us again today. So tell us a little bit about the process of someone getting diagnosed with breast cancer. What are women generally feeling when they receive this diagnosis? It's got to be pretty devastating and scary, and we don't know where to turn and what to do.
Dr Rachel Jendro: Thank you so much for having me on today. I am excited to tell everyone about the Bryan Breast Cancer Multidisciplinary Clinic. It is a very scary and anxiety-provoking time with this new diagnosis, and we never want patients to feel alone and we are here to take care of them.
Melanie Cole (Host): So then, let's talk about a multidisciplinary breast cancer clinic. Bryan has one, tell us how this helps women who are diagnosed with breast cancer. What are you finding are the largest benefits? What are your patients finding are the largest benefits?
Dr Rachel Jendro: During this appointment, the patient gets to come and meet with all providers involved in their cancer care. At the end of their appointment that morning, they will then have their individualized treatment plan made. This really prevents the patient from having to drive to multiple doctor's offices, which can delay their care.
Melanie Cole (Host): So Dr. Jendro, as we see improved coordination of care and the opportunity to assess each patient from many viewpoints, how exactly does a multidisciplinary clinic work with all the specialists involved? And while you're telling us that, given the complexity and with increasingly complex treatment algorithms that add new options to your armamentarium of available therapies, every day we're learning about new exciting things, who's in charge of guiding that patient care? Can you elaborate on the model itself?
Dr Rachel Jendro: When the patient presents for their appointment that day at the Bryan Breast Cancer Multidisciplinary Clinic, they will be checked in and then shown to their exam room. The patient will remain in that exam room for the duration of their appointment, and the providers will come to them individually. During their appointment that day, they will meet a breast surgical oncologist, a medical oncologist, a radiation oncologist and an oncology nurse navigator. By the end of that appointment, they really have their plan set. They will have all of our information to contact us as well. The oncology nurse navigator really becomes their point person if they have additional questions or need more detail after the appointment concludes. But they will always be able to contact us and we really just want them to feel very well taken care of.
Melanie Cole (Host): Well, that is certainly just the way of the future. Isn't it? That is really where medicine is headed to this multidisciplinary approach. So who should attend? When is it appropriate to seek this multidisciplinary breast cancer clinic? When a woman does get diagnosed, how does this process all work?
Dr Rachel Jendro: So any person diagnosed with breast cancer can attend this multidisciplinary clinic. A lot of times the referrals will come from their provider, but the patient can call as well. We do have an easy one number that will be provided to all primary care providers who could just call this one number and automatically get plugged in to this appointment. So we try to make it as easy as possible.
Melanie Cole (Host): What are your patients saying about it, Dr. Jendro?
Dr Rachel Jendro: The patient feedback has just been incredible. Patients really love that they see everybody in one morning. It really cuts down on their time. Patients have to take off of work for these appointments. They have to arrange for transportation. It's just so much easier for the patient to be able to get everything done in one morning.
A few things that may occur after this appointment is the patient may require additional imaging, such as a breast MRI. And we take care of scheduling that for them, the patient may choose to perform genetic testing and we would get that scheduled for them. So we really want to make sure just everything is taken care of and lined up and they just feel extremely just well taken care of.
Melanie Cole (Host): It does certainly sound like it. So how does the team support the woman through this process? Can you speak about the navigator involvement? Because they are some of the most important people in this process to the patient, because they're the one helping the patient directly navigate this dizzying world of a cancer diagnosis. So tell us a little bit about how that helps.
Dr Rachel Jendro: You know, it's a very overwhelming time and there's so much information coming in from these different specialties as to different options for care. When I sit with my patients, we'll draw pictures and write information down and explain their imaging, their pathology, their treatment options. So they come away with drawings and pictures and information. But it's just a lot, it's a lot to take in. We have three breast cancer navigators, oncology navigators who have years of experience in the field. And are just very knowledgeable about all aspects of patient care. The patient will have their phone number and their email, so they can always get a hold of the oncology nurse navigator and just really never feel like they're left out there, not knowing what's going on with their care. So we always have that access point for them.
Melanie Cole (Host): Isn't that so important, that if they need to reach out, they don't have to go through an admin tree? They can really just reach out directly through email. What a wonderful service that is. If someone has been diagnosed with breast cancer and wants to have this kind of team of cancer experts to provide treatment recommendations throughout the multidisciplinary clinic, tell us a little bit about what they should do and to whom they should turn right at the beginning.
Dr Rachel Jendro: We really want to make this an easy process for the patient to be able to connect with our breast cancer multidisciplinary clinic and for the primary care providers as well. We have one number that the patient or the provider can call. That number is (402) 481-7900, that's 7-9-0-0. That is the easy number to call to get the patient in and the appointment scheduled and everything taken care of.
Melanie Cole (Host): And if you had to give one piece of advice as the breast oncologist surgical specialist that you are, Jendro, what would you like to tell women about the importance of getting that mammogram, the fear of the unknown, if they are told that they need to come back or get a diagnostic mammogram, or if they are diagnosed with breast cancer, what is your best advice? What would you like them to know?
Dr Rachel Jendro: You know, breast cancers can be detected through mammogram and/or breast ultrasound. Sometimes these cancers can be detected on physical exam by the provider or the patient. When that new breast cancer diagnosis comes in, I really want the patients to know that we are here to take care of them. Most breast cancers now are found early in the early stage and they have an excellent prognosis. So it's such a scary time to hear that word, but just know that we can catch these early. That's why our mammograms are so important. We should start those mammograms at age 40 and get them every year. When these are found early, excellent prognosis. We will be right there with you walking through the journey and we can handle this and do it together.
Melanie Cole (Host): What a lovely sentiment. Thank you so much, Dr. Jendro. You're a great guest as always. Such a great educator you are. Thank you again for joining us. And thanks to our Bryan Foundation partner, Medica. If you are in need of the services of Bryan Health's Multidisciplinary Breast Cancer Clinic, please call (402) 481-7900 or you can head over to our website at bryanhealth.org/breast-cancer for more information and to get connected with one of our providers. That concludes this episode of Bryan Health Podcast. I'm Melanie Cole.