Breast Cancer, Breastfeeding and Gestational Diabetes

Connect to people like me Younger women
1

Recent diagnosis of Hormone positive BC. 4 weeks post mastectomy.

like most I’m in the ‘WHEN AND HOW DID THIS HAPPEN’ phase of my journey. And I was just wondering if anyone else had a similar journey to me in terms of risk factors.

My thoughts being:

  1. I’m 2 and 4 years post-partum. Pregnancy elevates Oestrogen levels and my tumour size Grade 2 is around 5cm so may have been growth for 3 years…
  2. Had Gestational Diabetes which also promotes tumour growth somewhat indirectly . But I get a sense that this was a bit of a metabolic catalyst for my Cancer
  3. Breast Feeding which in the first 5-10 years due to tissue changes might actually increase risk of BC initially?
  4. And then full post-partum zero sleep stress and all the rest. Not the best for cell repair anyway!
  5. And finally - i continued to cycle normally 3 weeks after giving birth to my children despite exclusively Breastfeeding them for MONTH. (Clear Oestrogen dominance?)

Anyone else young, have small children and experienced all and any of the above?

X

2

Hi @mrscc23

I am sorry you have cancer. Please don’t spend time worrying about why this might have happened. Our biggest risk factor is being female and having breasts. Genetics, environmental, health and lifestyle factors play a part but fundamentally cells divide and sometimes it goes wrong without there being a particular reason for it. You also can’t change what has happened, so wondering if you could have done something differently isn’t productive. I hope your treatment goes well and that you make a full recovery.