Take it easy. Slow and steady does it.
Sheelagh x
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I had my surgery two weeks ago too. My consultant appointment is next Friday
Sheelagh x
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Thanks and good luck with your consultant appointment
Good morning ladies
Hope you all had a good nights rest.
Have any of you seen the Speakers Live section? They are a direction of zoom information meeting type things and thereās one on hormone treatment in September. Iāve just signed up for it as I found the one on diet a couple of weeks ago very interesting.
Have a Good Friday!
C xx
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@misswoof-88 Hi Alison, hope all goes well at the appointment today 
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Clear lymph nodes and clear margins!! Whoop whoop!
Radiotherapy in a few weeks (Sept/oct) and another appointment on Monday to sort out hormone therapy. Had a blood test today to confirm post menopause (or not), then Iāll find out whether itās tamoxifen or Aromatase inhibitors
But, for now, apart from dealing with the drain (and Iāve now got my own home kit to do it myself), Ive got some peace and quiet this weekend and for the next few weeks 
Such a relief 
Xx
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Thatās great news, Iām so happy for you!! Thatās another huge hurdle crossed.
I havenāt been told anything about the hormone therapy yet as apparently the oncology team will discuss that with me. Given that Iām 52 the consultant thinks it will probably be tamoxifen.
Bet youāre feeling very relieved today hun 
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Great news! Out of curiosity, when they give you your results do they say how many radiotherapy sessions you need? I assume your surgery scars have to be healed so they allow 6? weeks before starting? I started on letrozole (anti oestrogen) prior to surgery, not noticed any major side effects except my hair is shedding or that could be the stress of everything! Iām 60 and post menopausal
You must be so relieved to get your results. Iām waiting to hear next week All the best. X
Brilliant news, Iām so happy for you
Bxx
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Hiya, I can provide my answer and maybe Alison will reply when she canā¦
I was told initially that Iād have 5 radio sessions but at my Oncology appt they added 5 boosters because, despite clear margins, I had a 0.3mm margin in one spot so theyāll zap me some more to be absolutely sure. Itās good that theyāre so thorough!
My 10 start on Monday providing they sign off the plan in time (from a phone call today)
Yes, you have to have completely healed because radio can damage the skin. My wound was still slightly leaky at my radio planning appt 10 days ago but itās fine now so theyāre happy to go ahead.
Hope that helps x
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Thank you, good luck for Monday, and enjoy the weekend xxx
Hiya, sorry to butt in 
I was initially told after discovering the first lump that I would need 5 sessions of radiotherapy. However the consultant wasnāt sure if the oncologist would up this following the finding of a 2nd lump so just waiting to hear. The area I live in hope to start radiotherapy around 8-10 weeks after surgery as the wounds generally have healed by then.
I donāt know yet which hormone therapy either so trying to do a bit of research into side effects etc beforehand!
Good luck for your appointment next week
Charlotte xx
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Evening ladies!
God I tired tonight, I think itās catching up with meā¦
So,in answer to the above, I was initially told that radiotherapy was going to be between 1-3weeks (mon to fri).
Today he said, that will be decided by the oncologist. As to timeframes: absolutely nothing doing until I am fully healed. Sept/oct at the earliest. So, donāt worry lovely ladies, they wonāt zap anything that isnāt properly healed.
I did discuss hormone therapy but there is a ? over my menopause status. They took some bloods today that they and get a better idea.
Ideally they want me straight on Aromatase inhibitors (these meds work by blocking/removing estrogen) but they donāt work well unless you are post men.
If they arenāt sure, Iāll go straight on to Tamoxifen for the full 5 years.
Tamoxifen works by binding to your bodies estrogen and blocking cancer cells from using it.
Both come with side effects. Proās & cons.
Letrozole worries me, Iāll be honest. Itās definitely efficacious but causes the worst side effects and they arenāt pretty.
I do worry about the long term effects of removing all estrogen from my bodyā¦
Itās a bit of a minefieldā¦ hard to know whatās best.
Any thoughts ladies ??
Anyone else on Letrozole?
How are you getting on with it?
Xx
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Other than the leaking boob it has been a positive week for the BBBās. Am so pleased that two of you have now had your post op appt and your lymph node and margins were clear. Fingers crossed that we will have the same results next week for those (including me) at our appts. The nearer it gets to the day the more nervous I get. I was also told 8-10 weeks before radiotherapy could start. To be honest I donāt mind waiting as I think ātime outā is much needed. With regard to the hormone therapy the more I read the more the side effects worry me. Anyway thatās further down the road so will park it for now. I am having an issue with my upper arm and stretching. Feels like an elastic band that wonāt stretch . Has anyone had anything similar ? I do my exercises religiously every day. Hope everyone has a good weekend with a little more peace of mind and a little less of a leaky boob 
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Hi, thanks so much for answering and hope you get much needed rest. Iāve not experienced any major side effects on letrozole. Maybe the odd hot flush, and hair shedding (thankfully I have a lot!) as itās supposed to take you back to menopause but Iām on heart tablets which do similar. Iām on them for 5 years at the moment. Because my cancer is ER+ itās been an easy decision to start and see how they go. I have to go for a bone density scan in a month, as they keep an eye on osteoporosisā¦.Weāre all different and you might experience other side effects. All the best and again thanks for the answers x
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Sheelagh I feel exactly the same as you regarding being scared of the side effects. Iāve already been through the menopause once and really didnāt fancy it again! Bit scared of thinning hair and bones but we will can cross that bridge together if and when we need to.
Are you doing the exercise which is a bit like climbing up a wall?
We will all be rooting for you next Friday so please keep us updated.
Have a good weekend
Evening @amafoss65 can I ask a quick question if thatās okay - were you given an option of Letrozole or was there a particular reason why that was chosen for you?
Obviously thatās a personal question so please donāt feel obliged to answer xx
Hi, no problem. My consultant recommended it because I was ER+ (7/8) from the biopsy, HER2- and PR-, along with being post menopausal. I was told it was the most effective to shrink oestrogen sensitive cancer. I was put on letrozole prior to surgery because I had 11 weeks from biopsies to my surgery due to travelling abroad. Just for background I was offered to take part in a trial to just take letrozole for 6 months and see if the tumour (mine was 2cms) shrunk completely but I wanted to get it taken out asap. I was tempted but of course there were no guaranteesā¦ it does show how much hormone therapy is advancing and hopefully it will help in the future more ER+ patients. There are a few threads on letrozole on this forum which can help with different view points. Some people struggle on different brands. Iām on Accord and I have asked my pharmacist to keep me on that brand. I take the tablet in the morning which I think helps as Iām active and donāt feel any joint pains, which can be a side effect. I have had the odd hot flushā¦of course my husband (heās so supportive) was delighted Iād be āmenopausalā again 
I was quite shouty and anxious first time round, this is much better so far Hope that helps answer. All the best x
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