Hi all, I am just here for some advice really and if I can help anyone in anyway too then I will.
My Gran was diagnosed with breast cancer in her left breast and in her lymph nodes in her left armpit back in 1983 she must of been in her 60’s at the time. She had what they called a radical mastectomy back then having her left breast removed. My Mum (my Gran’s Daughter) was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 65 in June 2016. She also had it in her left breast and lymph nodes in left armpit. She had a mastectomy and where they remove the nodes in arm pit etc and she also had her breast rebuilt i the same op. Mum then had to have 6 sessions of chemo and 3 weeks of radiotherapy. She was on tamoxifen. Mum was in remission but then got diagnosed with melanoma on her left cheek on her face couple of months ago. She also had to have a C.T scan which showed up inflammation behind the rebuilt breast. Mum finished her radiotherapy June 2017 and had been on the tamoxifen since. Sadly the biopsies that got taken to check what the inflammation was showed the breast cancer had returned ? it’s on the chest wall behind the rebuilt breast. The oncologist thinks there were cells left behind and they have just grown since the treatment last year. We find out on the 1st November if mum will need more surgery and chemo or if they will give the immunology tablet. We don’t know how big it is at present but do know it hasn’t spread anywhere else. Mum had surgery Thursday to have the melanoma further area on her face removed and the nearest lymph node in her neck checked. But my concern is my mum has had this and so has her mum and also my mums auntie (my Gran’s Sister, has breast and ovarian cancer) so I’m worried if I could potentially be at risk? My mum has the BRCA testing and she isn’t a carrier but we are not sure about my Gran and Great Aunt. They have passed away years back. I am 34 and have older sisters my eldest sister is 44 and she is currently going to a breast clinic to get checked. But has anyone else been in my position and what did you do? I have put this aside for past 2 and a half years since mum was first diagnosed however I worry not only for my Mum but for my Sisters and I. My Dad passed away in December and I am still trying to come to terms with that as well as this all 
Hi Kt,
I’m sorry to hear your mum has a reacurrance. You do seem to have a fairly strong history of breast / Ovarian cancer and these two along with prostate in men can be linked to a faulty gene but it’s not always the case as it is very rare and more often it’s just sheer bad luck.
My mum died from breast cancer in 2003 aged 60 and I was diagnosed in 2015 aged 46, I’ve also since found out that my Nan on my mums side had Ovarian cancer diagnosed when she was 80. I was refused genetic testing because 3 of us in a long line of females wasn’t enough to ring any alarm bells plus we were not considered to be young in breast cancer terms. Had we all been in our 30’s then things may have been different.
As your mums result was negative for the fault then you may struggle to get tested yourself as I’m sure she would need to have Had a positive result for you to be checked.
My mums sisters have been having annual mammograms since her death and now my two sisters are doing the same Since my diagnosis and everyone has remained clear thankfully so I hope we were just unlucky and there’s isn’t anything more going on.
I hope your mum gets her treatment plan sorted out soon and can crack on with getting herself well again Xx Jo
Hi Jo, thank you for your reply. I’m surprised you haven’t been given the BRCA testing as your younger than my Mum and the link she had was her Mum and her great Auntie. I am not so much worried as such about being tested for the BRCA gene as I do not have children but more so for maybe earlier mammogram as I’m only 34. I don’t know if this is something I should speak to my GP about and if this is something I should have done?
I’m sorry to hear you lost your Mum to this awful disease and that you’ve been affected by it. I do race for life every year and raise as much money as I can for Cancer Research and hope one day soon cancer will be a disease of the past!
I just worry if my Mum has to have chemo again she really struggled last time and they stopped her last chemo because of it so she had 5/6 sessions but they said it was safe to stop it.
I hope yourself, sisters and Auntie’s remain cancer free.x
Mum had seen a lump when getting out the shower when house sitting at my sisters she noticed it as she passed the full length mirror. She had a mammogram in the October and was clear and found the lump in the following June. She had the hormonal invasive breast cancer. They said had she not found the lump when she did and waited for the next mammogram things could of been very different. I think I will speak to my GP and see what they advise with mammograms and go from there I guess. It truly is heartbreaking disease and we live in hope for a cure.x
Hi kt.84
It’s Emily here from Breast Cancer Care. I’m really sorry to hear about the position you’re in.
While you’re waiting for responses on here, I wanted to let you know that one of our email volunteers called Gemma has had a similar experience, in that her mother had breast cancer too, and she then went through genetic testing herself.
Her profile is **here **and her email address is gemma@breastcancercare.org.uk - you’d be very welcome to email her to hear a personal perspective.
Best wishes
Emily at Breast Cancer Care
Thank you. Sorry for the late reply. Been crazy busy at work. And just had more bad news when Mum saw the oncologist Thursday to find out what treatment / surgery she will need they found fluid in her left lung and need to aspirate to take a biopsy to see if the cancer has spread to her lung. If it has they cannot do surgery on the breast cancer on her chest wall so then she will just have the immunology drug to prolong her life instead of cure the cancer ? she should be getting the fluid biopsy this coming week then back to oncologist for 15th for results and next steps. She also gets results 22nd for the lymph node they removed from her neck to check the melanoma hadn’t gone in to her lymph nodes. I feel so helpless right now and so scared of loosing my Mum ?
Thank you Jo. Trying to stay so positive but finding it very difficult. It doesn’t help living so far away from her either. I have ordered her a bouquet of flowers to be delivered to her to hopefully cheer her up as she loves flowers. The waiting is a nightmare
Can only hope and pray that there is a cure found to end this awful disease. I will continue to do race for life and donate as much as I can. And just live in hope. X
Sorry I hadn’t been back on here since I last wrote back in November. Mum got the dreaded results that the fluid was malignant and the cancer has spread from her chest wall in to the chest cavity the pluera. Surgery is way too invasive and the oncologist said it’s too high risk to operate so Mum is now terminally ill and has been put on the chemo tablet palbociclib and has to take it every 3 weeks then have bloods checked then a week off. She did her first 3 weeks and had bloods checked but it’s messed up her blood levels ? so she now needs to stay off them 2 weeks and go back for more bloods on 2nd Jan and see oncologist again on 3rd. I hope and pray they can sort her bloods out and get her back on tablets as without them the cancer is just multiplying ? I wish I could keep her safe and stop her going through all this. Cancer is so evil and affects way too many of us all and our families.