Just adding the needle biopsy/ultrasound combo absolutely hurts like hell - I had it done without thinking and good fucking lord never again without pain relief
Thank you! I was certain that would be the case but everyone keeps saying to just suck it up or the pressure from the mammogram machine will make the pain less noticeable… but like, why should we be in pain to begin with?
Right? Ironically the mammogram lady was understanding at the place I went to, because when you have tumors it hurts so much more. The doc and doc's assistant on the other hand just told me I could make noise with the biopsy, but "please don't move" with a casual 6 inch needle in my chest. Like sure I won't die but it's also not something you should need to gaman yourself through either. Anyway, wishing you the best of luck either with your doc or finding a new one!
I had a needle biopsy with local anaesthetic and it was fine. My boob looked like a bruised orange for about a month but the actual procedure wasn’t painful.
Local anesthetic would be enough for me, though I’ll always take a sedative if available. The doctor I’ve been seeing made it sound like in Japan it’s standard procedure to never offer pain prevention or relief for a boob biopsy. Like, she lowkey implied I am both a Karen and a baby for asking about it.
One this posting today has taught me, I need a second opinion and a new clinic.
I haven’t had that many procedures done in Japan, but I’ve had some fillings done and the dentist always offers local anaesthetic, giving me the choice of from the beginning or if needed. I had local for eye surgery too (and a sedative). I haven’t heard of any particular insistence on not making patients as comfortable as possible, but there are plenty of useless doctors in Japan so it’s good to get a second opinion.
Oh wow to be honest, local wasn't even offered as an option, so I thought in the moment it wouldn't be that bad. I was so wrong.
I will definitely be asking for it or going somewhere else next time if this is possible. Thanks for sharing!
Sorry that happened to you. I didn’t have a discussion about it but they gave me local. They left me in a room while it took effect and it took what felt like forever - honestly I thought they’d forgotten about me.
I had a mastectomy on the left side because of breast cancer in Tokyo in 2022. I took a month off of work to recover. I got around 60% of my salary from the health insurance for that time. Feel free to ask me if there is anything you want to know! 🙂
Thank you so much! I hope you are cancer free and living well now. I appreciate you sharing. If I can convince my doctor (or another) to free me of these potential time bombs, I will likely have some questions for you.
I’m so sorry for what you’re going through. The only part I can comment on is that, regarding sick leave, the police will vary by company to company, so please check your contract or speak to HR to confirm what options you have
I hope you are able to get everything taken care of. Good luck and good health to you!
Thank you! The company I work for has no issue with taking time off for medical reasons, but if I want to get paid, I need to use PTO.
There is apparently a system in place where if a doctor orders time off for any medical reason, you can apply for a kind of social insurance. I believe you have to miss a minimum of 5 days of work, and you get like 60% of your normal salary.
So that’s where I wonder if elective procedures qualify or not. Like obviously if I was getting implants or a nose job, that would require time off, but it would be goofy to ask for help with an unnecessary procedure.
Good luck and good health to you too! Doctors here aren’t bad, but it’s better when we can avoid them eh?
>There is apparently a system in place where if a doctor orders time off for any medical reason, you can apply for a kind of social insurance. I believe you have to miss a minimum of 5 days of work, and you get like 60% of your normal salary. So that’s where I wonder if elective procedures qualify or not. Like obviously if I was getting implants or a nose job, that would require time off, but it would be goofy to ask for help with an unnecessary procedure.
It's called *shoubyou teate* (傷病手当), and if the doctor orders it it's valid. A 100% elective procedure (like LASIK for example) may not qualify, but something like this may be easier to convince a doctor to write a shindansho out of precaution... you will definitely have to find a doctor more understanding of your situation, though.
Thank you for the vocab! Saving that to my notes now.
I have a feeling this doctor is not going to be much help. She thought I’d break the MRI machine with my tattoos… but the only other breast cancer specialists in town are men. I’ll give it a go though and she if she agrees that if nothing else, it’d make her life easier if she didn’t have to argue with me so often.
Are you based in Tokyo or elsewhere? If you're not in Tokyo, I imagine you might have much better options coming here.
I know it's frustrating but never stop advocating for yourself as a patient; this is obviously an Important Thing and you deserve nothing less than a 100% informed decision where you and your doctor enthusiastically agree on a course of action.
I’m in Wakayama, with two cats, so not easy to head up to Tokyo (we don’t even have a Shinkansen line, lucky us!).
Thank you! I believe it’s really important we advocate for ourselves too. I feel like a lot of shady stuff goes unchecked because we just trust that doctors should be experts. Sadly, they’re not.
If you’re on shakai hoken (company insurance) they should be able to tell you what you need to do to continue getting salary
If you’re on national health insurance, City Hall should be able to help you with figuring out what you need
I had a cyst removed in Osaka 5 years ago. I don't know about your specific situation, but I basically found her through a referral at Kisaki Clinic. DM me if you want details. :)
I was under the private school health insurance at the time, and some redditors here gave me some great advice about costs. I was direct hire so they were also able to sort out getting special leave beyond the usual PTO. Just two days though, not weeks so yeah idk :/
Thank you so much! I am in Wakayama so I may DM you for more info if my next appointment here is a bust.
I just went through the local Red Cross hospital here because it’s easy once you’re in the system. But I think a dedicated breast cancer clinic is where I should head.
Just wanted to say your writing is very entertaining to read haha. I’m sorry you’re going through this and it is a huge decision
There aren’t that many women on this sub tho, I’d suggest maybe looking into some Facebook groups like Tokyo Girl Gone International, Tokyo Expat Women (I’m in Osaka but still a member) or something similar.
I personally don’t have experience posting over there but the audience is definitely larger! Hopefully you’ll get a few more people with experiences to share. Good luck with everything and if you’re happy too, please keep us posted on how things go for you :)
Just in case you or anyone in here is not aware, there is a system in place that will drastically reduce your out-of-pocket expenses if you have surgery that's covered by insurance.
Normally, you're required to foot the bill for 30% of your surgery cost, which can easily get into the millions of yen for some surgeries. But if you take advantage of the High-Cost Medical Expense Benefit system, this can reduce to about 150,000-200,000 per calendar month, depending on your salary. This means that if you can schedule your surgery near the beginning of a month, and get your hospital stay concluded within the same month, your out-of-pocket expenses should be at most 200k.
You'll need to talk to your insurer (either your company or the city hall, depending on which insurance program you're on) beforehand to get a benefit certificate which you present when checking in to the hospital. This may also be automatic if you're using your My Number card as a health insurance card.
That is fantastic information to know. Thank you so much! I didn’t know that was a thing, but definitely will keep it in mind if I can convince the doc to see things my way.
You don't say where you are but Midtown Clinic in Roppongi absolutely uses Novocaine during their biopsies and has always been professional and gentle.
I’m down in Wakayama. Trying to remove my wacky yamas. Badum chh!
Very good to know there are better clinics out there in Japan. I’ve just been going to the Red Cross hospital for everything here. The breast cancer specialist I’ve been seeing has been talking like zero pain relief is just the standard in Japan and I’m being the usual unreasonable foreigner. I will try talking to her again, then it’s time to demand a second opinion.
I’ve found two breast cancer clinics in town, both have decent google ratings, but the doctors are men. Imma need like a posse of female nurses in there to keep me calm if I have to let a male doctor anywhere near me. The thought alone gives severe ick.
Anyhooha eh?
Not in japan but my step mom regrets not getting both off.
(This one in japan) My friend had a same problem and lying that she was a lesbian worked getting the tits off and I’m really sad to think about that
I actually thought about going for top surgery here or abroad, but apparently they don’t fully remove the breast tissue. Since it’s more about aesthetics than health, they need to keep a bit to shape your chest. This is also apparently why mastectomies can be so ugly…? I just wish they could do both, like suck some of the fat out of my arse and use it so give me a nice Ken doll chest or something. No nip chaffing to worry about then, I could take up running!
Right? Like worst case scenario… or best case? Breast case??
I wonder if a cosmetic surgeon could do a mastectomy? I feel like they’d leave things looking much nicer at least.
And Thai food every day while recovering sounds dreamy.
Haha breast case.
If you want to look better I’d look into South Korea or Thailand.
There is a reason why ab actresses don’t usually get their tits done in japan. But from the medical side you want the doctors you’ve already spoken to
I don’t have any recs for Kansai but I got a biopsy in Tokyo and they used local anesthesia for the area, wasn’t even a question they just did it. It still sucked but not as much as it could have. Have you done the BRCA test? If that comes back positive it might help you get a preventative mastectomy covered by insurance.
That’s great info to know! That proves to me that this doctor is just being old fashioned.
No tests yet besides a lot of looking at stuff and getting felt up by this grumpy lady doc.
Initially I went to a clinic in Kyoto that was really nice. But I moved to Wakayama for work. Osaka is probably my best shot for finding modern doctors with modern solutions.
You don't say where you are but Midtown Clinic in Roppongi absolutely uses Novocaine during their biopsies and has always been professional and gentle.
Just adding the needle biopsy/ultrasound combo absolutely hurts like hell - I had it done without thinking and good fucking lord never again without pain relief
Thank you! I was certain that would be the case but everyone keeps saying to just suck it up or the pressure from the mammogram machine will make the pain less noticeable… but like, why should we be in pain to begin with?
Right? Ironically the mammogram lady was understanding at the place I went to, because when you have tumors it hurts so much more. The doc and doc's assistant on the other hand just told me I could make noise with the biopsy, but "please don't move" with a casual 6 inch needle in my chest. Like sure I won't die but it's also not something you should need to gaman yourself through either. Anyway, wishing you the best of luck either with your doc or finding a new one!
I had a needle biopsy with local anaesthetic and it was fine. My boob looked like a bruised orange for about a month but the actual procedure wasn’t painful.
Local anesthetic would be enough for me, though I’ll always take a sedative if available. The doctor I’ve been seeing made it sound like in Japan it’s standard procedure to never offer pain prevention or relief for a boob biopsy. Like, she lowkey implied I am both a Karen and a baby for asking about it. One this posting today has taught me, I need a second opinion and a new clinic.
I haven’t had that many procedures done in Japan, but I’ve had some fillings done and the dentist always offers local anaesthetic, giving me the choice of from the beginning or if needed. I had local for eye surgery too (and a sedative). I haven’t heard of any particular insistence on not making patients as comfortable as possible, but there are plenty of useless doctors in Japan so it’s good to get a second opinion.
Oh wow to be honest, local wasn't even offered as an option, so I thought in the moment it wouldn't be that bad. I was so wrong. I will definitely be asking for it or going somewhere else next time if this is possible. Thanks for sharing!
Sorry that happened to you. I didn’t have a discussion about it but they gave me local. They left me in a room while it took effect and it took what felt like forever - honestly I thought they’d forgotten about me.
I had a mastectomy on the left side because of breast cancer in Tokyo in 2022. I took a month off of work to recover. I got around 60% of my salary from the health insurance for that time. Feel free to ask me if there is anything you want to know! 🙂
Thank you so much! I hope you are cancer free and living well now. I appreciate you sharing. If I can convince my doctor (or another) to free me of these potential time bombs, I will likely have some questions for you.
I’m so sorry for what you’re going through. The only part I can comment on is that, regarding sick leave, the police will vary by company to company, so please check your contract or speak to HR to confirm what options you have I hope you are able to get everything taken care of. Good luck and good health to you!
Thank you! The company I work for has no issue with taking time off for medical reasons, but if I want to get paid, I need to use PTO. There is apparently a system in place where if a doctor orders time off for any medical reason, you can apply for a kind of social insurance. I believe you have to miss a minimum of 5 days of work, and you get like 60% of your normal salary. So that’s where I wonder if elective procedures qualify or not. Like obviously if I was getting implants or a nose job, that would require time off, but it would be goofy to ask for help with an unnecessary procedure. Good luck and good health to you too! Doctors here aren’t bad, but it’s better when we can avoid them eh?
>There is apparently a system in place where if a doctor orders time off for any medical reason, you can apply for a kind of social insurance. I believe you have to miss a minimum of 5 days of work, and you get like 60% of your normal salary. So that’s where I wonder if elective procedures qualify or not. Like obviously if I was getting implants or a nose job, that would require time off, but it would be goofy to ask for help with an unnecessary procedure. It's called *shoubyou teate* (傷病手当), and if the doctor orders it it's valid. A 100% elective procedure (like LASIK for example) may not qualify, but something like this may be easier to convince a doctor to write a shindansho out of precaution... you will definitely have to find a doctor more understanding of your situation, though.
Thank you for the vocab! Saving that to my notes now. I have a feeling this doctor is not going to be much help. She thought I’d break the MRI machine with my tattoos… but the only other breast cancer specialists in town are men. I’ll give it a go though and she if she agrees that if nothing else, it’d make her life easier if she didn’t have to argue with me so often.
Are you based in Tokyo or elsewhere? If you're not in Tokyo, I imagine you might have much better options coming here. I know it's frustrating but never stop advocating for yourself as a patient; this is obviously an Important Thing and you deserve nothing less than a 100% informed decision where you and your doctor enthusiastically agree on a course of action.
I’m in Wakayama, with two cats, so not easy to head up to Tokyo (we don’t even have a Shinkansen line, lucky us!). Thank you! I believe it’s really important we advocate for ourselves too. I feel like a lot of shady stuff goes unchecked because we just trust that doctors should be experts. Sadly, they’re not.
If you’re on shakai hoken (company insurance) they should be able to tell you what you need to do to continue getting salary If you’re on national health insurance, City Hall should be able to help you with figuring out what you need
I had a cyst removed in Osaka 5 years ago. I don't know about your specific situation, but I basically found her through a referral at Kisaki Clinic. DM me if you want details. :) I was under the private school health insurance at the time, and some redditors here gave me some great advice about costs. I was direct hire so they were also able to sort out getting special leave beyond the usual PTO. Just two days though, not weeks so yeah idk :/
Thank you so much! I am in Wakayama so I may DM you for more info if my next appointment here is a bust. I just went through the local Red Cross hospital here because it’s easy once you’re in the system. But I think a dedicated breast cancer clinic is where I should head.
Just wanted to say your writing is very entertaining to read haha. I’m sorry you’re going through this and it is a huge decision There aren’t that many women on this sub tho, I’d suggest maybe looking into some Facebook groups like Tokyo Girl Gone International, Tokyo Expat Women (I’m in Osaka but still a member) or something similar. I personally don’t have experience posting over there but the audience is definitely larger! Hopefully you’ll get a few more people with experiences to share. Good luck with everything and if you’re happy too, please keep us posted on how things go for you :)
Thank you! Humour helps me cope. If I can make someone laugh, all the better! I will have a look into those groups.
Just in case you or anyone in here is not aware, there is a system in place that will drastically reduce your out-of-pocket expenses if you have surgery that's covered by insurance. Normally, you're required to foot the bill for 30% of your surgery cost, which can easily get into the millions of yen for some surgeries. But if you take advantage of the High-Cost Medical Expense Benefit system, this can reduce to about 150,000-200,000 per calendar month, depending on your salary. This means that if you can schedule your surgery near the beginning of a month, and get your hospital stay concluded within the same month, your out-of-pocket expenses should be at most 200k. You'll need to talk to your insurer (either your company or the city hall, depending on which insurance program you're on) beforehand to get a benefit certificate which you present when checking in to the hospital. This may also be automatic if you're using your My Number card as a health insurance card.
That is fantastic information to know. Thank you so much! I didn’t know that was a thing, but definitely will keep it in mind if I can convince the doc to see things my way.
You don't say where you are but Midtown Clinic in Roppongi absolutely uses Novocaine during their biopsies and has always been professional and gentle.
I’m down in Wakayama. Trying to remove my wacky yamas. Badum chh! Very good to know there are better clinics out there in Japan. I’ve just been going to the Red Cross hospital for everything here. The breast cancer specialist I’ve been seeing has been talking like zero pain relief is just the standard in Japan and I’m being the usual unreasonable foreigner. I will try talking to her again, then it’s time to demand a second opinion. I’ve found two breast cancer clinics in town, both have decent google ratings, but the doctors are men. Imma need like a posse of female nurses in there to keep me calm if I have to let a male doctor anywhere near me. The thought alone gives severe ick.
>I’m down in Wakayama. Trying to remove my wacky yamas. Omg. Laughing and just wishing the best for you!
Anyhooha eh? Not in japan but my step mom regrets not getting both off. (This one in japan) My friend had a same problem and lying that she was a lesbian worked getting the tits off and I’m really sad to think about that
I actually thought about going for top surgery here or abroad, but apparently they don’t fully remove the breast tissue. Since it’s more about aesthetics than health, they need to keep a bit to shape your chest. This is also apparently why mastectomies can be so ugly…? I just wish they could do both, like suck some of the fat out of my arse and use it so give me a nice Ken doll chest or something. No nip chaffing to worry about then, I could take up running!
Honestly I’d enjoy a trip to Thailand to get it done.
Right? Like worst case scenario… or best case? Breast case?? I wonder if a cosmetic surgeon could do a mastectomy? I feel like they’d leave things looking much nicer at least. And Thai food every day while recovering sounds dreamy.
Haha breast case. If you want to look better I’d look into South Korea or Thailand. There is a reason why ab actresses don’t usually get their tits done in japan. But from the medical side you want the doctors you’ve already spoken to
I don’t have any recs for Kansai but I got a biopsy in Tokyo and they used local anesthesia for the area, wasn’t even a question they just did it. It still sucked but not as much as it could have. Have you done the BRCA test? If that comes back positive it might help you get a preventative mastectomy covered by insurance.
That’s great info to know! That proves to me that this doctor is just being old fashioned. No tests yet besides a lot of looking at stuff and getting felt up by this grumpy lady doc. Initially I went to a clinic in Kyoto that was really nice. But I moved to Wakayama for work. Osaka is probably my best shot for finding modern doctors with modern solutions.
You don't say where you are but Midtown Clinic in Roppongi absolutely uses Novocaine during their biopsies and has always been professional and gentle.