A somewhat unexpected 50th Birthday present!!!
A somewhat unexpected 50th Birthday present!!! Hello to you all as a newly diagnosed breast cancer patient. My tumour was found as a result of the mammogram screening programme and I’m so glad I went because I nearly did’nt!!! The diagnosis was given to me 4 days before my 50th birthday but I made sure that it did’nt put a dampner on the proceedings I can tell you!!!
I am so annoyed that I did’nt find it sooner as I am fanatical about breast self-examination - my mother had a mastectomy when I was young.- but I could not feel any difference between the breasts. The only give away that something was amiss was that over the last couple of months I had noticed my left nipple was not as prominent as the right one but I never gave it a second thought as I could not feel a physical lump.
Mine is a grade 1 tumour about 8mm in size and is under my nipple. I have been told that the biopsy indicates that it is very slow growing but even then it is not much consolation 'coz I know it is there now and with every twinge I think it is getting a gallop on and going elsewhere!!! My surgery is in a couple of weeks and due to the location of the tumour I’ve been advised to have a mastectomy but that will be confirmed on Friday after speaking to my consultant. Being a scientist and growing the little buggers for a living, my imagination tends to run riot at times as I’m sure all of you have experienced. Ever the optimist that I am let the battle commence!!! Bye for now.
Hi red vixen
I know its no consellation about your birthday (happy birthday by the way) but at least turning 50 you got to get the mam gram otherwise with so many people they don’t realise they have bc and it goes undetected until it is too late…I too found out a week before my birthday and yes it does put a dampner on it I sure as hell am going to celebrate my next one in style…
best wishes
Lucy
XX
Hi red vixen
I know its no consellation about your birthday (happy birthday by the way) but at least turning 50 you got to get the mam gram otherwise with so many people they don’t realise they have bc and it goes undetected until it is too late…I too found out a week before my birthday and yes it does put a dampner on it I sure as hell am going to celebrate my next one in style…
best wishes
Lucy
XX
Red Vixen - welcome to the forum but sorry at the same time that you are here. If it is any consolation I had a 6 mm grade 1 cancer 17 years ago and just had radiotherapy and Tamoxifen. It took all that time to come back and I have just had another 5mm one removed and am on Arimidex for the next 5 years. I am 68 and very fit with no family history. What a bitch it is. Good Luck and do let us know how you get on.
hi, sorry to have to meet under such circumstances but you are among friends here.I am 3yrs post diagnosis and it gets easier but still get my moments!A little knowledge is dangerous as they say so growing the buggers cant help!thinking of you love sharonx
hi, sorry to have to meet under such circumstances but you are among friends here.I am 3yrs post diagnosis and it gets easier but still get my moments!A little knowledge is dangerous as they say so growing the buggers cant help!thinking of you love sharonx
Hi RedVixen Hi
I had my diagnosis 4 days after my 50th - is there something special about the age?? I was a bit annoyed as I had gone to the clinic 6months previously and it wasn’t picked up ( it just didn’t show on the mamogram). Still they have it now and I’m into chemo.
Anyway what made me smile was the fact that us half centuries are actually classed amongst the Young Ones!!!
Love the name -
All the best with your journey through the treatment and stay Young
Love
Swanie
hi redvixen i also have been diagnosed with a grade 1 cancer 8mm very close to my nipple and unstable cells in both breast lcis have had 2 different diagnosis the 1st being a masectomy which for 3 months i thought i would be having. now second consultant says i dont need this after lots of soul searching i am back to the masectomy. i hope your consultation goes well on friday and if you have any decisions to make i hope they are not to difficult i will constantly be thinking of you take care x x x
Hi Red vixen So sorry you had a rotten birthday present - I am also going for surgery on the 22nd -mine is 7.7mm grade 2 - keep talking to the girls on this forum - we are all in this together and you will get thru it.
Lots of hugs
Yingy xx
A somewhat unexpected 50th birthday present! Hi RedVixen
I got my diagnosis the day after you did - and a couple of months before my 50th. No idea what type of tumour I have - I was too busy trying to pick my hubby up off the floor to hear much of what the registrar said. Hubby was certain it was a cyst - they run in my family - but I’d seen the ultrasound and knew it wasn’t that simple. Still, luckily I’m having my surgery next week - just a lumpectomy so far - but I don’t get to see the consultant until I’m on the operating table as he rang me from holiday!
As I see it, I’m no worse off now that I was when I discovered the lump 3 weeks ago - I knew I’d have to have it removed anyway, so it’s only what comes after.
Fortunately the only person so far who has said “keep positive” was the Registrar - I gather this is a bit of a bugbear for one or two people and you can end up wanting to thump anyone who tells you this!
So, chin up - we are not alone! Good luck!
Happy birthday RedVixen. And good for you for not letting a little thing like breast cancer spoil the celebrations!
I was diagnosed 5 days before a planned long weekend to Berlin and my first question to my breast cancer nurse was, “Can I still go?” “Absolutely!”, she said. “It is important to try to keep your life as normal as possible.”
I admit there were times I couldn’t get it out of my mind. I bought my daughter a very expensive coat and a Steiff teddy bear, convinced I wasn’t going to be around to see her grow up. But, all in all, I did enjoy myself and I am so glad I went.
Please don’t berate yourself for not spotting your tumour earlier. Even very large tumours can be easily missed. A woman I met at radiotherapy had a tumour that was 19cm but it didn’t present as a ‘lump’ and she only realised something was wrong when her breast became inflammed.
8mm still means very early breast cancer, putting you at stage 1. Add the grade 1 and your long-term prognosis is excellent (something like 95% 10 year survival.)
I am 43 and I just wish they would extend the screening programme to younger women. My tumour was dismissed as a cyst by my GP and I wasn’t referred for investigation for 8 months. By then it had grown to 3cm. The mammogram picked it up straight away as it was also a grade 3. If I had been called for regular screening I may have got away without having chemo and my prognosis would have been better.
I understand why, being a scientist, your mind rushes away to places you would rather it didn’t go. But, from what I now know, it is very, very unlikely the ‘little bugger’ has had the time or the energy to get a gallop anywhere else.
Keep posting and let us know how things progress.
For the record, I had neo-adjuvant chemo to shrink the tumour, followed by a WLE. I got clear margins and had negative nodes. I completed radiotherapy 3 weeks ago and am now classed as NED (no evidence of disease.)
I now have a good head of hair in a cute pixie cut. My eyelashes and eyebrows are back. I plan to return to work in about 4 weeks time. BC rocks your world but it does return to normal eventually.
Keep your sense of humour and you will be fine.
Love
Lola x
Decision Day!! Well it’s off to see the consultant this morning to decide if it is to be breast conserving surgery or mastectomy. I’m having a bad day today as ever since the biopsy my boob has been very tender and I woke up at 3 this morning with it throbbing for England. Prickly and jabbing sensations as well/ Has anyone else had this? It is driving me potty and I’m getting a bit worried about why this is happening. Only got another week til my op so I hope it’s not an indication of something bad.
love to you all
same thing here hi
i’m so sorry to hear about you, we are all in the same place, we just have to arm ouselves, I know exactly what you mean about the biopsy, mine throbbed and ached every night as a sort of physical reminder of what was going on, in fact it was very attention seeking in week after biopsy and after my WLE, my boob hasn’t talked at all.
The biopsy must inflame it, ?
I’ve started planning a party for post-op, silly but it gives me a list of things to think about when my brain does a nose dive
ClaireXX
good luck with the consultation and the treatment
Chloex