Certain symptoms may indicate that your breast cancer has recurred. You need to know what these symptoms are. If you experience any of these symptoms, it is important to see your doctor immediately so that they can be evaluated and appropriate follow-up care can begin. When choosing the doctor to handle your follow-up care, consider choosing the one with whom you feel most comfortable. The majority of breast cancer recurrences happen within the first 5 years after primary therapy .
Medical history taking and physical exams are the most common methods of discovering a recurrence.
So, one of the most important things you can do is to maintain continuity of care and on-going and honest communication with your doctor. Your combined efforts will help in detecting a recurrence earlier.