HI, I haven’t been on this site for a while. Just returned to work and trying to get back to some sort of normality. I was diagnosed with invasive ductal carcinoma, in July 2008. It was 2.1 cm, ER+, Her2 +, I had lumpectomy, lymph nodes were clear as were margins. Treated with 4 cycles of chemo and radiotherapy, currently receiving herceptin due 3rd infusion next week.I have got a lump about the size of a pea, it is hard and about 3 inches from my scar on the chest wall. Went to breast clinic last week and they are going to do an ultrasound, still waiting on appointment and i am going out of my mind with worry. They said it could fatty tissue but cannot take any chances. Surely it cannot be cancer again as i only finished my radiotherapy at christmas, does anyone have any thoughts on this? sorry for rambling. If it is bad news would it be a local recurrence or a regional one?
Thanks for any help you may give x
Hi Powerjen
So sorry you are having to go through this stress so soon.
I had a local recurrence and it is confined to the remaining breast tissue site. A regional recurrence may be in the chest wall, chest muscle, lymphs etc…
Hope this helps…
Sending you love and luck
Nikki
Thanks for your reply nikki, how soon did your cancer recur? What was your treatment? If you don’t mind me asking. I am not sure if the new lump is on the breast tissue or if you would say it is on the chest wall. I have an ultrasound on Tues before my herceptin so should know more then.I cannot seem to find out how soon it can recur all the sites say within 2 years but they don’t say if it can recur 8 months after diagnosis whilst still undergoing treatment x
Hi powerjen
I had a local/regional (?!) recurrence whilst on Herceptin - originally dx May '07, had chemo, mastectomy, radiotherapy then Herceptin. Found new lump Nov '08, which I had removed in January '09.
I don’t think that there is a specific timeframe - it can happen anytime.
Good luck with your results - hope it is just fatty tissue.
Best wishes.
Sally
Hi Sally, thanks for replying, sorry to hear you had recurrence. You have said it was ?local/regional why is this?, Did you get offered more treatment once the lump was removed? Hope i am not being too nosy
x
Hi powerjen
I was basing my reply on Nikki’s comment, where I learnt that you can have a ‘regional’ or ‘local’ recurrence. I now assume that mine was a regional one, being that I had had a mastectomy so the recurrence was on my chest wall. Prior to that I had thought it was a local one.
My oncologist wasn’t sure what to do for the best. Initially he was going to give me chemo and Lapatinib, then do surgery - but wasn’t sure if the PCT would fund this (Lapatinib) for me. He started to get “twitchy feet” and decided to remove the tumour straightaway instead, to reduce the chances of the cancer spreading. The PCT did later refuse to fund the drug. He then contemplated giving me chemo afterwards but, as the tumour has gone, he wouldn’t be able to tell if it was working anyway.
I am going to complete my Herceptin treatment, (I have had 13/18 sessions so far, so may as well finish the course). We are just hoping (as both tumours are HER-2+) that maybe the 2nd tumour was inside scar tissue/had no blood supply, and that’s why the Herceptin failed to prevent the cancer recurring - who knows?!
So I just have my fingers (and everything else!) crossed that they got it all out this time - only time will tell.
Sally
x
Hi Sally, thanks for your reply. What a worry for you but you seem to have the right attitude, i hope i can be as positive if i get bad news.I have never heard of laptanib, i assume it is expensive and that’s why the funding was refused.I think it’s a disgrace that this is allowed to happen. My oncologist told me that my herceptin was costing £30,000 and that people in america have re-morgaged their house to get it. I said just as well i live here then, after all i have worked in the NHS for 24 years! I hope the herceptin does it’s job for you, take care
Hi Powerejen
I was multi focal stage 1 grade 1 IDC and had an a mastetomy with skin sparing LD flap with implant. I first noticed two rice-like nodules 6m later under the skin were my original tumours were. (thebiopsy site). I insisted on a biopsy which proved clear… About a year later my PS noticed that the nodule looked dodgy. (I had thought it was discoloured and hard from all the biopsies!) He arranged an US and in no time another nodule appeared on the scar line of where my nipple would have been.
The first nodule was biopsied even though the ultrasound said “cysts”… and proved both were recurrences that had gone into the skin. I then had to have my reconstruction removed, radiotherapy and tamoxifen. I am 2 months post op from having a replacement DIEP now! A recurrence can happen any time…
Sally…Sometimes a chest wall recurrence that is directly behind the breast tissue, as I understand it is called a local-regional?
Nikki
Thanks for replying Nikki, from what you have said it sounds as though you may have had the recurrence as early as 6 months after your op. My heart goes out to you, what a lot to cope with. I hope you are recovering well.Did you have any chemo after your surgery?
Hi Powerjen
I was told that chemo wouldn’t do much good as my cancer is still grade 1 and apparantly chemo only really works on more aggressive cancers! It was wierd as I still have a really high risk of mets (secondaries.
Nikki
Hi Nikki, why are you at high risk of mets? I was grade 2 and really only got chemo because i was HER 2 + and you need to have chemo to get herceptin, go for biopsy tommorow so will let you know outcome
take care x
Thinking of you for your biopsy tomorrow.Got everything crossed for you.Gill x
thanks x
replied on other thread powerjen but didn’t know if you would pick it up, just wanted to say thanks and good luck for tomorrow, have fingers crossed for us both,
sandra x
Hi Powerjen
Hoping all went OK today?
In answer to your question, any recurrence ups your risk for mets substancially as by rights the cancer has had a longer chance to move round your body. I’m now seen every 6 months between mammos and onc. and anything the slightest bit out of the ordinary gets me a whole host of scans!
Nikki
Hi powerjen, hope all went well for you today, as for me enlarged lymph node 2to3cm had ultrasound and biopsy get results next thurs, asked b/c nurse for best and worst case scenarios, best case-reactive node from original op, worst case-cancer cells in node, so at the moment i’m hanging on to best case while i play this shxxt waiting game, thinking of you,
sandra x
Hi everyone good news, ultrasound showed what they think is fatty tissue. No biopsies were taken as the DR felt they were not required. She then said no test is 100% so if lump gets bigger it can be scanned again.I am trying to think it’s ok but a wee bit of me is thinking what if the DR is wrong, what am i like!Just found out my father in law has prostrate cancer, i hate cancer!
Sandra, fingers crossed. You are right the waiting is awful.Lets hold onto the best case scenario. Nikki thanks for your reply, that makes sense. x
excellent news for you powerjen but also so sorry to hear news regarding your father in law, I’m in total agreement I hate bloody cancer too,
sandra x
Good news for you Powerjen, though I know what you mean by that watch for it growing advice…
Her’s hoping your FIL gets through his journey OK.
Nikki