Probably a throwaway because my fiancé isn’t too keen on talking about things like this, but instead of doomscrolling and reading terrible AI-generated Google responses, I figured it might help to type this out and get some genuine responses from humans.
My fiancé was diagnosed with breast cancer in June 2023. Thankfully, it was caught early, didn’t spread to the lymph nodes, and was HER2-negative, but it was still considered “aggressive.” She underwent a double mastectomy and completed 12 sessions of chemotherapy, finishing in January of this year. She’s been on tamoxifen and another drug (I don’t recall the name at the moment), which she’ll need to take for the next 10 years.
Until recently, everything had been going well with nothing but positive updates. But today, things changed.
This past week she saw her oncologist. Yesterday while we were out Christmas shopping, her oncologist called (on a Sunday at 2:30 PM, which immediately felt concerning). He told her that her “markers” were high and has ordered scans for tomorrow. She’s now scheduled to meet with him on Thursday. After looking at her chart her ca15_3 numbers have nearly doubled since her last appointment to 58,
On a related note, she’s also developed a small rash under her reconstructed breast. She called her surgeon about it a few weeks ago and he prescribed an antibiotic which she has been taking and is scheduled for a follow up Friday.
After some Googling, I’ve become even more worried what the elevated numbers and rash and what that could mean. I’m not sure if she’s connected those dots yet (though I’m sure she probably has).
So, with all that background, I have some questions:
- Are there non-cancer reasons her markers might have spiked so much?
- Has anyone else experienced this kind of scare?
- Is this normal, or should we be as worried as I feel?
I don’t have anyone to talk to about this and am honestly freaking out. I usually try to stay positive and see things with a glass-half-full perspective, but I’m really nervous right now.
