Dr. Sandford's communication with her patients is about the worst I have seen in a doctor. When I learned that I had breast cancer, I was scared and shocked. I had no idea what to ask her - I read about margins and the surgery on line. That is the only source of information I got. The margins recommended for DCIS, which was my diagnosis, are 2 mm. I assumed that was what Sandford would take. I understood that since the cells (DCIS) were 3 mm in size (less than 1/10 inch) they would not be visible when the surgery was done, so I assumed the amount taken would be 3 cubic mm (the DCIS) + 2 mm margins on all sides + safety factor of 2 or 3 times for a maximum of approximately 10 to 20 cubic mm - or for we Americans about .06 to .12 inches. She removed tissue that was 2 1/2 X 2 1/2 X 1 3/4 inches. I discovered this when looking through the pathology report from the hospital where I had surgery. There was never a discussion prior to surgery.

When I asked her following surgery why so much was taken out, she said she had felt a "subtle fullness" in my breast that was 1.5 to 2 cm in size. She did not mention this to me at any time prior to surgery. When she palpated my breast, it was approximately 10 days after my biopsy and what she felt was probably bleeding or swelling caused by the biopsy because there was nothing in my post-surgery pathology report except the 3 mm DCIS.

Had she discussed this with me before surgery, I would have advocated for less being taken, or selected another surgeon. At any rate, whatever she "felt" was not cancer and did not show up on any of the several mammograms I had, nor was it felt by any of the other 4 people who had palpated my breast before she did, nor did it appear on the post-surgery pathology report. She removed perfectly healthy breast tissue.

During the discussion with Dr. Sandford about the amount of breast tissue removed she told me that she wanted 13 mm margins with a minimum of 3 mm. The pathology report from surgery indicated that one of my margins was only 2 mm, another was 5 mm and the other was 60 mm, so on two sides, she did even get the margins she said she was aiming for. When I asked if I should worry that she did not get the margins she said she wanted, her office manager emailed to say "your margins are fine." Dr. Sandford also told me that my "questions [about the amount of tissue removed] were becoming unreasonable" and that "she had done nothing wrong."

I have a friend who recommended Dr. Sandford as a surgeon because she had a benign mass removed by Sandford about 7 years ago. In 2020 my friend had a mammogram ordered by Dr. Sandford and the radiologist indicated that the results were abnormal and he recommended that the friend get an MRI. Dr. Sandford did not relay this information to my friend, nor did she order an MRI and now this friend is in Texas being treated for metastatic breast cancer because the cancer was not detected until a year later because of Sandford failing to pass this information along or order an MRI.

Sandford's staff, although friendly, are also incompetent. Her nurse practitioner, Nancy Nigge told me at my pre-op visit that I had an abnormal EKG, but did not offer any options to understand this. Ms. Nigge's response when I asked her about this was "I don't know, I am not a cardiologist." She did not send a referral down to the institute that had done the EKG (it was the institute that they sent me to for the EKG). When I called the institute, they told me that "I was not assigned to a cardiologist" and when I left a message asking to speak to someone, they never called me back and Sandford's office, who sent me there, did not help. In addition to the stress of having breast cancer, I then thought I would be going into surgery with an abnormal heart rhythm.

At the post-op appointment with Ms. Nigge, she noted that I had developed a seroma, which I had been warned is a common occurrence. This is build-up of fluid in the breast. Her suggestion for this was "if it gets uncomfortable, come in and we can insert a needle and drain it." Apparently, she is not aware that you can control seromas by wearing a tight sports bra or a compression bra, a solution that seems much more pleasant than having yet another needle inserted into your breast after just having surgery. Luckily a family member suggested this, and it resolved itself in a couple of weeks.

I will say that Dr. Sandford did a good job stitching me up. The scar is healing well and looks good, but that is the only positive experience I have had with this office.

Submitted Nov. 30, 2021

I’m going to file a formal complaint against my mom’s cancer doctor, Marilyn B. Sandford. She not only talked mom into wanting implants she told mom I was being selfish for voicing my concerns about it and said I wasn’t being supportive. Im not going to put up with this kind of abuse from a doctor who doesn’t know anything about me. Mom came home screaming at me when I am sick and we got into a massive fight over what this doctor said. I am done with this doctor. She is in it for the money. She is making everything worse and is trying to break up my family in the process.

Submitted May 2, 2019