Hello everyone,
After using the forum for a week or so to get advice decided to ‘officially’ join as I may meed help in the coming months.
My story is that I was called for my very first Mammogramm in May and was then recalled to the screening unit this resulted in a fine needle biopsy followed by a vacuum assisted biopsy two weeks later. I was given the result of this on the day we were due to go on holiday, small tumor which no-one could feel, I had no idea it was there - needless to say went on hols with date for WBE and SNB booked for 14th July. Two weeks after the op went back for results - nothing in the lymph nodes (thank goodness) but not enough margin around the tumor, back in following Tuesday for another op to remove tissue. Last week had my follow op appointment - all cancerous tissue removed, now for Tamoxifen and Radiotherapy, have already seen Oncologist and have started on the TAM, so far so good (just awaiting any se from TAM), will probably start radiotherapy in September.
From reading other posts I feel I have been fortunate so far with the treatment I have received and hope this continues and feel ready to face the next stage, it helps to know that there are others out there I can ask questions of any maybe pass on my help to others if I can.
Sorry if I have gone on a bit but I think it helps to put in words what has been going on, especially when those reading it can empathize.
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hello ruth, seems we share a very similar experience, but im 12 months ahead of you , i was also recalled after my mammo, i had no lump puckering discharge, no symptoms whatsoever, i also had the wire guided lumpectomy,and i also had to have more tissue removed to get clear margines, my nodes were clear aswell , i had 17 rads, and am now on aromasin, i suffered too many side effects with tamoxifen so it was changed, feeling better now tho …so welcome to the club that no one wants to join XX angie ps shall i say SNAP LOL
I’m very similar to you - recalled after a routine mammogram for something I still couldn’t feel. It turned out to be invasive lobular cancer, but very small. I’ve had a lumpectomy and Sentinel Node biopsy (nodes clear) so have been started on Femara (letrozole) and am just starting week two of three weeks of radiotherapy.
Hi. I am also new to all this. Went to docs for abcess in right breast, sent for mamogram found dcis in left breast, had lumpectomy which found ilc and not good margins so had second op along with sentinel node biopsy which came back clear, thankfully. Saw surgeon who said would be going for radiotherapy and put on tamoxifen and given appointment with on for following day, I was happy with that so far until onc “offered” me chemo and seemed to expect me to decide there and then. 7 months of feeling shit for an improvement in outlook of 3%. I couldn’t choose so called a family meeting and let them decide. Is it normal to expect a patient to make this kind of decision. I am not a medical expert of any kind. I know it is right to do what those who care for me want me to do cos they are going through it with me, but to be given that choice in the first place seems a bit odd especially after the surgeon and bcc had already told me there would be no chemo.
I understand that I will be given a similar optionwhen I have my meeting with the oncologist. I had WLE and SLNB. The tumour was 15mm IDC, nodes and margins clear but don’t k ow the grade ( tried to find out from bcn but she didn’t have the info and consultants secretary on holiday for a week). Can’t decide which way to go if given the option and it’s stressing me out that I make the right decision. Baker4bteakaway What did u decide on on the end? Wish they wouldn’t leave the decision to us.
It’s not that uncommon to be given the option to accept or refuse chemo. I have to say, when my initial diagnosis said it was Grade 2, I intended asking if there was any benefit at all in having chemo, so I was going to ask for it even if they hadn’t offered it! As it turned out I got a free upgrade to Grade 3 and HER2+ after my surgery so chemo was a definite for me.
I won’t lie, chemo was the toughest thing I’ve ever done, but I did it and I’m out the other side of it (still having Herceptin) and I would have made the decision for chemo again if put in the situation you’re in, but it’s an individual decision. That 3% could make the difference.
I can sort of understand why they give u the choice, i think these days they’d be sued if they didn’t! When i was first diagnosed i had the option of either a lumpectomy & rads or mastectomy,i just thought aarrghh, i don’t know! It really is such a hard thing for us to make a decision, u want them to make the decision for u but i guess they can’t, they can only advise.
I too had an free upgrade to grade 3 with microscopic node involvement so now have to have chemo as well but in a funny way if they now told me i didn’t have to have i’d be worried. I know 3% doesn’t sound much but for me i want to throw everything i can at it. If i didn’t have it i think i would worry more in the future, at least i’d know i did everything i could to get rid of the b****r. It’s a personal choice & a really hard one to make, good luck with whatever u decide. x
Hi all
I was also given the choice of chemo and herceptin my cancer was grade 2 her2+ Ive opted to go ahead my first treatment is 20th Sept, I’m still having a battle with myself as to whether I’ve made the right decision all my family want me to go ahead as they say If anything happens in future years would I be saying if only. I am feeling really scared especially about the se’s of chemo, this disease is a real nightmare even though my mx has gotten rid of all the cancer its still giving me nightmares about the chemo.sorry to go on but I hated having to make this decision.
For those of you with clear nodes and the choice of chemo, from my understanding there’s a bit of a grey area between definite benefit from chemo and probably no benefit. Like you, at the beginning I didn’t want to have to make the decision, but unfortunately there’s no hard and fast rule for this. If anyone was interested in knowing what the current thinking among the experts is, google St Gallen’s early breast cancer conference, their latest report has a 3 column table of indicators, and basically the more you have in the ‘no benefit’ or ‘probably benefit’, this gives you a better idea.
I got myself into a bit of a state over this, as I have bilateral and multifocal, and was recommended a bilateral mastectomy which freaked me out, and I decided to go with Bi WLE’s with rads, a decision I am happy about now, partly because I went ahead and had the Oncotype DX test done privately and this adds another level of certainty for the node negative people on whether chemo is a good idea. It did cost £2,500, which my lovely sister paid for, so not to be undertaken lightly, but my result did come back ‘low recurrence’ and very little benefit to chemo, so I rest easier at night.
I let my extended family decide and I now have 2 cycles of CMF to go through. It hasn’t bee easy especially just recently as my heart has been giving me some problems and i don’t know if it worth finishing the course if it is going to leave me with other problems that are life threatening. I am going to see my onc and a cardio specialist before I have anymore. Chemo has proved just as bad if not worse than I expected it to be and I have major respect for people who go through it without the 24 hour backup that I have had from my Family, neighbours and friends and I will be throwing them all a big party when I start to feel better to say thanks.