Hello, I’m female 37. I’ve been diagnosed with breast cancer two weeks ago. I was lucky to find it early and am currently undergoing more tests to determine the treatment plan. Er positive, HER2 negative, lymph nodes tbc. For now, I’m told it should be very treatable.
My issue is, I have two close family members who deteriorated and died a few years after their diagnosis and treatment (breast and bowel cancers), and now I find myself doubting whether it’s worth undergoing a treatment at all…
I’d like to connect with someone who is an actual success story. I.e. someone who lives a good life following a breast cancer?
Ideally this would be someone who had a breast surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and is now in the clear living a fairly normal life and not just surviving etc. I’m curious to know about your experience and I hope this will give my brain some proof that it can actually be okay and help me make the right choice. Reading articles is not going to cut it. I need to talk to a live person.
Is there anyone in this group who can share their success story
Yes, me! I didn’t need chemo but had a lumpectomy and radiotherapy nearly a year ago and now been on tamoxifen for about nine months. I am happy, healthy, and loving life! I have a great family, good job, go to the gym with friends most days. I ran my first half marathon about six months after surgery and will be doing another in a couple of months raising a bit of cash for a local cancer support centre. I rarely worry about cancer, I know it’s a possibility it may come back at some point but, if it does, then I will deal with that then. I only come to these forums still to hopefully provide hope and support to others as I know how helpful I found that when I was diagnosed and show that a normal life after cancer is absolutely possible. x
Welcome to the forums, you’ve definitely come to the right place.
I’m not quite what you are looking for diagnosed at 50 after my first mammogram surgery and radiotherapy 3 years ago and absolutely living my best life now.
Breast Cancer Now, the forums and the wider breast cancer community will support you every step of the way
My sister was diagnosed with er+, pr+, her- ductal cancer 10 years ago (age 43). She had all the treatments and has been on tamoxifen due to stop in a couple of months.
My second sister was diagnosed 1 year later with triple neg ductal cancer. Had lumpectomy, chemo and radiotherapy.
Both have been inspirational throughout and are perfect examples for BC treatment success. Just what I needed when I was diagnosed with hormone responsive lobular cancer at the end of last year.
Hi sim2, I was diagnosed in February 2023. I had lumpectomy in the April followed by radiotherapy during the summer. Been on tamoxifen since then. I am now due my 2nd follow up appointment. I am doing great - working full time, days out and going on holiday. Yes, I do get tired and yes, a fear of it coming back. I have never looked back on the treatment. It was for the best. You mentioned your two relatives. Treatments have changed and are much more effective nowadays. Only you can decide, but I am glad I have taken all treatment offered. Best wishes x
@sim2 This is my sister in law. 14 years ago, at the age of 52 she was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer. Lumpectomy, chemotherapy, radiotherapy. She and my brother are currently on a crazy 4 month odessey in South America which has included trekking through jungles, being off grid and sleeping in a tent for 3 weeks at a time and dancing the tango . There is life after breast cancer. The treatment is hard but you have so much more life to live afterwards.
Double mastectomy, no recon here, after bilateral diagnosis last summer. Now on 10 years of letrozole.
It’s hard to understand when you are at the start of your diagnosis and treatment, but things will get better and you will have a great life ahead.
I remember sitting in the waiting room and seeing all these women smiling and laughing while I sat crying behind my dark glasses - I said to my husband that I could never imagine smiling again nor could I understand now the other patients could be happy.
Fast forward three months and I was swimming in the sea during my delayed holiday, along with my son and husband, thinking I was the luckiest person alive to be able to do this. I am genuinely so much happier and content now than before my diagnosis. Don’t get me wrong, I would never have wanted to have gone through what I did, but it has genuinely made me happy to be alive.
My mum had breast cancer 20 years ago and is also living her best life. I work at a hospital and like you, I see people and their families every day who have died from their cancers, but they are not me and they are not you so we can’t compare our outcomes.
I have mentioned here before that a few years ago my daughter’s friend died aged 17 in a car crash while another friend’s daughter died from a genetic disease aged five - it really hits home to me how no one is guaranteed another day and worrying is pointless. Enjoy even the smallest thing of each day.
Good luck in your treatment and we will all be here on the other side xx
PS - I am fitter and healthier than I ever was before. I was back running and in the gym 10 days after double mastectomy and lymph node biopsy (4 removed), and am more than 2 and a half stones down despite the fears that letrozole makes you gain weight! Another positive! xx
Hi @sim2 I’m sorry that you lost two relatives to this bloody disease but I wonder which relatives they were and how long ago did they die. My grandmother for example died of breast cancer but that was a few decades ago, following which breast cancer treatment has changed exponentially. I have always expected BC myself as I am a dead spit of my Nan and sure enough was diagnosed with er+ HER2- IDC almost three years ago following a routine mammogram. I had a lumpectomy, radiotherapy and endocrine treatment and am another one who doesn’t think about those days very much any more. You need to understand that no-one dies of primary breast cancer because breasts are not organs like your liver or brain. If the disease spreads then it is serious but by having the treatment that is being planned for you now you will be doing everything in your power to prevent spread. The percentage of women who recover from treatment for primary BC and go on to live long lives is very very high and I’m sure you will be one of them - but you have to have faith in the treatment process. Good luck and keep posting here when you need some positivity.
I’m 3 years post lumpectomy and radiotherapy and doing really well. One of my friends had BC over 10 years ago now - she’s fine and very active and was at the outdoor sauna this morning. Two other ladies I occasionally meet for cold water swimming have both had BC , one had a mastectomy over twenty years ago . Another in the same group was going through treatment at the same time as me - we don’t discuss it but I think she must have had triple negative or HER2+ as she had chemo prior to surgery then radiotherapy and must be coming up to three years clear. She’s a very fit active lady. Another friend was diagnosed about 3 months after me she’s also very well . I’m a member of a local support group and though not everyone attends every meeting I have been seeing the same faces for 3 years now and the 2 volunteers who are both quite young looking women had their cancer over 10 years ago and are really well and active.
I have 2 male friends who are doing well 3 years on from treatment for bowel cancer and non- Hodgkins lymphoma respectively.
I have lost a couple of colleagues to breast cancer - those are the things that you think of when you are diagnosed . Not the success stories of which there are far more and treatments are more successful all the time . I’m so sorry about your family history there’s no wonder you are worried . There’s someone else in my support group who was positive for the BRCA gene and is now quite a few years post treatment and is well. We do all eventually learn to live with a little bit of uncertainty / anxiety regarding recurrence .
I hope our replies have helped you a little , sometimes the beginning of the journey , the uncertainty and not having a concrete plan in place is the worst thing of all and we have all been there . It’s natural to wonder about treatments and everyone is different - different cancer , different underlying health conditions , different ages , different attitudes to risk or just different priorities. One of the scary things is that the treatments are recommended and it’s up to you to decide what to do , once you know exactly what it is and are offered a plan then you will be able to work that out. At that point or even now it might help you to talk to the Nurses on the helpline on 0808 800 6000 9am - 4pm Mon to Fri and 9am - 1pm Sat. Xx
It is so hard at the beginning to wrap your head around it all, but hang in there. I was diagnosed age 36 with triple postive cancer. I had 2 surgeries, chemo, 20 radiotherapy doses, a year of IV herceptin and tamoxifen. I worked throughout it all. It is 19 years since diagnosis this May. I have remained fit and healthy throughout. I am a runner, triathlete, skier and all round active outdoorsy girl. You will come through it, and get back to a new normal. Best wishes.
Thank you for this thread
It’s restored some faith and hope whilst I’m in the midst of my treatment. Glad to read about the success stories! @sim2 i wish you all the very best throughout treatment.
I was diagnosed with triple positive breast cancer in Jan 2021, went through 18 months of treatment including 6 months of chemo, 12 months of targeted therapy and mastectomy. It was in the sentinel lymph node but thankfully had not spread further (they removed all lymph nodes under that arm just in case). Whilst it was terrifying to go through, the brutality of the treatment ensured that it did not come back and I have been cancer free ever since. I am on Tamoxifen for 10 years although they may well switch me to Letrozole after 5. I work 4 days a week in a school which is demanding but I can manage. I can run, walk, ski, do whatever I choose really. I do get more tired than I used to pre-cancer but am also capable of being energetic when I need/want to! I hope this gives you hope that a new and better life is possible. I live much more for the present and don’t sweat the small stuff as much. All the very best xxx
Yes I’m another success 2 years after diagnosis. I had chemo, surgery, radiotherapy, targeted drug Phesgo for a year and did one year of Letrazole.
Letrazole and EC chemo were the worst part. Since stopping Letrazole with Consultant approval I am back playing tennis, joined a netball club, looking after grandchildren and generally feel almost on top of the world. So the very best of luck to you. x
I was diagnosed in 2011 all I remember was it was Her2, got chemo 2 different types Fec & Doxytacel with 17 herceptins, 5wks Radiotherapy & 10yrs tamoxifen, was in 2 of my lymph nodes so then all got removed which was so glad of. Was 38 at the time. Got through it all, at that time was so scared but just got to take one day at a time. Everyone’s treatment is different but it’s amazing how strong you are and then how strong you will become when all treatment finishes, it might feel like forever when going through all this, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. x[quote=“sim2, post:1, topic:130461, full:true”]
Hello, I’m female 37. I’ve been diagnosed with breast cancer two weeks ago. I was lucky to find it early and am currently undergoing more tests to determine the treatment plan. Er positive, HER2 negative, lymph nodes tbc. For now, I’m told it should be very treatable.
My issue is, I have two close family members who deteriorated and died a few years after their diagnosis and treatment (breast and bowel cancers), and now I find myself doubting whether it’s worth undergoing a treatment at all…
I’d like to connect with someone who is an actual success story. I.e. someone who lives a good life following a breast cancer?
Ideally this would be someone who had a breast surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and is now in the clear living a fairly normal life and not just surviving etc. I’m curious to know about your experience and I hope this will give my brain some proof that it can actually be okay and help me make the right choice. Reading articles is not going to cut it. I need to talk to a live person.
Is there anyone in this group who can share their success story
Sorry about your diagnoses. I got diagnosed a week before you so I can’t give you a success story yet but I fully intent to have one.
If it’s found early then I don’t see at all why you can’t be cured.
May I ask what other tests are you under going.
Hi sim2 i was diagnosed with the same as you in july last year, was so scary, after many mammograms scans, and biopsies, about 2 weeks later i went into hospital the RVI in Newcastle, had lumpectomy lymph nodes removed for precaution there was nothing in my armpit it was clear and margins clear, had 5 rounds of radiotherapy which made me tired and ive been put on tamoxifen for 5, years, with my breast cancer been early stage, stage one they told me i could go on to live a normal life, but im due for a scan as i can feel what they think is scar tissue, and to have it done as precaution, still puts me on edge, you definitely will be fine here if you need to chat, good luck you be ok there’s a few difference breast cancers but were all here to support eachother xxx
I was diagnosed last July with ER2 positive and HER neg cancer in my right breast. I found a lump in the shower and I wasn’t going to see the drs as one day it was there and next it wasn’t so just thought it could be hormonal. Thankfully I did go and see my Gp who referred me for scans. Straightaway the anxiety and fear was too much for me to cope and I was signed off work to focus on my health ( I was in quite a high pressured role at the time).
In the end I went down the private route as my husband had medical cover and I thought they will be fast in treating it if it was cancer. I was initially told I was having a lumpectomy but after a mri scan I was told it was too big and ended up having a mastectomy with implant reconstruction. It’s major surgery but I did it and with time I physically healed.
Im now on tamoxifen for the next 5 years and will have yearly scans. The side efforts are bearable and I can cope.
I found the mental aspect much harder and ended up having face to face counselling which has massively helped me recovery over the last few months. I have now returned back to work on a phased work basis and feeling quite normal on most days if I’m honest. I do often think back how I did it but you just do and I now feel quite proud I have returned to work and some normality after cancer.
Hi Simona I was diagnosed 10 years ago this month aged 40. I was er+ her2 negative. I had a lumpectomy and radiotherapy, didn’t have chemotherapy because I had the oncotype dx test that looks at the genes in the cancer and decides whether chemo is of any benefit and was told it wouldn’t be as the tumour was 99% positive to estrogen so I was prescribed tamoxifen which I have taken ever since and have tolerated it really well. I have just ordered my last prescription of this so only got 2 months left of it to take. I went to pieces when I was diagnosed because my mum died of breast cancer when i was 15, she was only 52 and I just thought I was going to go down the same path but that was now 35 years ago and treatments have moved forward a lot since then. I hope my story helps you. If I can get through it anyone can. Wishing you all the best and sending hugs
. There is life after breast cancer. The treatment is hard but you have so much more life to live afterwards.
here if you need to chat, good luck you be ok there’s a few difference breast cancers but were all here to support eachother xxx