Not been on here for ages as been trying to do the whole life thing! On Saturday it will be 2 years since I was diagnosed with bc (8cm HER+ tumour hormone negative, 14/25 nodes). Had mastectomy, chemo, rads, herceptin. Am feeling fine, no symptoms. I was 28 when I was diagnosed. Am 30 now and my husband of 4 years walked out on me 6 months ago and I’m getting divorced. Weirdly still managing to feel fairly positive. Back at work full time.
I just wanted to post on here and talk to some lovely ladies, as now it’s coming up to the cancerversary am feeling a bit disconnected from everyone again. No one really understands how it feels to live with this hanging over your head, or naggiging in the back of your mind all the time.
I’m trying to look forward but it’s really hard sometimes, because I worry if I plan or let myself relax it’ll come back just to spite me! I want to believe I’ll meet someone else and be happy, but I don’t know if I’m too damaged to manage it. Am becoming a bit sad again and was hoping someone could snap me out of it on here!
I passed my 2 year anniversary in October last year and marked it with a 4 day trip to Belfast, where my late dad was from. Dad passed away in a nursing home the October before I was diagnosed, and I had never been to see his birthplace, so it was very poignant for me; I hadn’t dealt with his death properly when I found out I had cancer. However, the trip was a very positive experience as it allowed me to let go of my dad and also to decide to try and move on with my life. I know a lot of people find this difficult and I have had the knock back from some for being positive, but we can’t all be the same.
I wanted to try and draw a line over this when I got to the 1 year mark, but as I still had a way to go with Herceptin treatment and hospital appointments it wasn’t really possible - the 2 year point is more realistic in my view. I had 6 sessions of counselling at the end of treatment which helped. Lost momentum a bit recently as I had a bad dose of flu and I’m still tired, but I’m getting back on track. Writing lists for myself and trying to stick to them helps, I have always done this and the psychologist who did my counselling told me doing that is like a form of cognitive behavioural therapy.
I am also two years on this month. I finished herceptin last December, so like you it was a long haul.
I don’t come on here every day anymore like I used to - partly down to drawing the proverbial line, and partly down to the new website, I don’t like it as much.
I have booked myself on to this year’s race for life - a 10k one this time, which is giving me a good incentive to get my fitness back. I don’t know about you, but I got really worn out towards the end of herceptin, but I am now beginning to feel better.
Hi friends,I too passed my 2 year anniversary in Oct 2008[2cm triple neg IDC]I thought I would cut down my visits to bc sites but I value their ongoing support when the gremlins take over my brain.I have made some friends,enjoyed debates,even had fun at times;and have certainly learned a lot about bc and all the ramifications of dx.
Still 2 years is a good milestone to pass!
Vx
Hi Liz, love this thread as it is a very hopeful one I think. I’m currently having chemo - 3xFEC and 3xTAX (had 1st tax last Thursday). Had 2.6cm multifocal DCIS, 10/18 nodes so had WLE and ANC. I was just interested to see your stats as most of the people I post with had no or very minimal node involvement and that makes me worry more I guess. I’ll be having 30-40 rads then 5yrs tamoxifen but have been nervous of outright asking my onc about prognosis due to the lymph node involvement. It’s great to see people posting 1 and 2yrs on. It must be very hard to live with, I try not to panic when I feel a little ache or pain, or think I can see/feel a swelling. Congratulations to you all, and I wish you many, many years symptom-free. What a strong bunch of ladies. love and hugs Pat x
Hi Cass
I have just read your comments and was glad to find someone who is having similar treatment that is planned for me!You sound so positive?
I was recently dx in late Jan and had a WLE + SNB(2cm,grade 3+sml dcis, ER+ Her2-) early Feb. I am going for 2nd surgery in 2wks for, hopefully, clearer margins and LN clearance as 1 of the 2 nodes were positive(can’t really understand why i need them all out)?
Chemo is planned 3-4wks after surgery followed by rads & tamoxifen(why can’t i just get my ovaries taken away as my c is oestogen receptive)?
My scars after 4wks have healed well but i am left with a very sensitive nipple in which i cannot bear clothes/anything touching me. It is stopping me from the getting out and about & every step or bump is agony and i walk around most of the time like the ‘Hunchback of Notre Dame’ and it doesn’t seem to be easing!
If this does not go, i would consider having a mastectomy at my next surgery rather than being left like this! Sorry for not being more positive but i find this all rather new and scary! Please help?
Just a note to say that having your ovaries removed will not necessarily mean that you won’t still have oestrogen circulating in your body.
I was over 10 years post menopause at diagnosis, and had already had one ovary removed due to a cyst 28 years previously, but my cancer was Oestrogen and Progesterone and HER-2 Positive and I am on Arimidex.
Oestrogen is still produced in body fat (although I am very slim at 7 1/2 stone) and in the adrenal glands even after the ovaries are removed or stop functioning.
So I believe you would still need Tamoxifen or Arimidex or similar even if you had your ovaries surgically removed.
Hope your other difficulties soon get better, and all the best for the rest of your treatment.
Interesting thread… I’m 2-and-a-half years from dx, a strongly oestrogen-positive bc (I’m on Femara) - and by the way, I had had both ovaries removed in 2000 (benign ovarian cysts) but still got bc… it probably didn’t help that I was 2 stone overweight, I weigh less now and am always hungry! except first thing in the morning.