Hi, I just wanted to introduce myself.
They found a tiny tumour in my right breast 5 weeks ago. I had a lumpectomy and lymph nodes removed yesterday, results and treatment plan on the 27th. All I know so far is it’s grade 2. They wouldn’t tell me anything else.
They told me yesterday 1 in 5 chance of having to come back for a shave because of unclear margins. The thought of them going near these wounds is scary.
I have been dizzy and sick since yesterday as the Anesthetic is making my BP drop too low.
I am in shock and everything feels so unreal.
Reading your posts makes me sad for you all. X
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Welcome to the forum @lisyanthus .it certainly does feel very unreal at first and like you w been transported to some sort of parallel universe “cancerworld “ .It does get easier , the waiting for results part is very tough.Fingers crossed for positive results from your op. Best wishes Jill
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Hi @lisyanthus welcome to the forum. You will find lots of support here as you navigate this new world you’ve been thrust in against your wishes! I do hear you re the anaesthetic although my experience wasn’t helped by having liquid morphine syringed down my throat in the recovery room. I was as sick as a dog for 36 hours. Other than that though, I was fine, didn’t need the painkillers I was sent home with and started the exercises 48 hours later. These are exceptionally important so please don’t ignore them. You may well have radiotherapy in the future and being able to lift your arms above your head during that procedure is essential. Waiting for results is the difficult part but hopefully they have clear margins so you won’t have to go back to surgery and they will give you your histology and subsequent treatment plan. When you get that, you have something positive to concentrate on to get you on the other side of this thing. In the meantime, feel free to ask questions, have a little rant or express yourself as you wish here as there will always be someone who has been there before you who can empathise.
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Hi @lisyanthus
Welcome to the forum. It’s such a friendly supportive place.
You are doing great, having surgery is a big thing. Give yourself time to heal. As already mentioned waiting for the test results is always hard.
Remember to do your post surgery exercises but don’t push yourself, do what you can when you can.
I thought it might be helpful to give you some links that may be useful in the future. The BCN nurses are fabulous and take time to listen to you.
Some find the Someone like Me really helpful to connect by phone with some who knows what you are going through. It’s a long list but if you bookmark this thread you can come back anytime.
- Website: You can register for our services. Or find our publications, more information and support or how to volunteer. It’s all here.
- Helpline: 0808 800 6000 (Mon-Fri 9am-4pm; Sat 9am-1pm). Speak to our trained helpline team. No questions are too big or too small.
- Ask Our Nurses: You can message our nurses here on the forum, or confidentially. Whatever you prefer.
- Someone Like Me: Will match you with a trained volunteer who’s had a similar experience to you. They’ll be a phone call or email away to answer your questions, offer support, or simply listen. Call on 0800 138 6551 or contact our email volunteers
- Younger Women Together: For people 45 and under. You can choose the support that suits you: online, one day or 2 day residential events. Find an event.
- Moving Forward: Finishing treatment can be hard, and it can be difficult to move forward with your life. You can access our support online or face-to-face. Our online information hub and Moving Forward journal provide extra ideas and information. Courses run over 2 weeks, with 2 3.5hr sessions. Or trained facilitators and volunteers are there to help. Find a course near you.
- Publications: Download and order publications. You can read online or order your copy for free. From managing menopausal symptoms, hormone treatment or triple negative breast cancer, our information is here for you.
- BECCA: Our free app is your pocket companion to primary breast cancer.
- Speaker Live: sessions are on every month. They focus on the topics that matter to you, lead by expert speakers from across the UK. You can register for one of our webinars, and watch it live, or as a recording. We also have Facebook and Instagram Live sessions run by our clinical team on a huge range of topics. You can find them all on YouTube
- Secondary breast cancer is full of uncertainties. But you can count onLiving with Secondary Breast Cancer to be there for you, no matter what. You’ll be able to talk, listen and learn with people who understand the challenges that secondary breast cancer brings. Our groups are open to people with a secondary diagnosis. Monthly sessions, facilitated by a therapist, are held in a variety of locations across the UK and online. Find a group. And if you are 45 or under? Our Younger Women with Secondaries Together events provide information and support
- LiveChat: Open to people with a secondary diagnosis. A private chat room where you can talk to others in a similar situation.
- Access Fund – all our events are free, but if you need help getting there or accessing our services, let us know. Email us at accessfund@breastcancernow.org or call 0345 077 1893.
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Welcome to the group and sorry you are going through this.
I just want to jump on and say you will be fine, it’s hard to believe it at the moment. I had a double mastectomy in July and I remember sitting in the consultant’s waiting room (numb and in shock) seeing all these women waiting and they were talking normally and smiling occasionally. I said to my husband that I couldn’t imagine a time when I would ever smile or laugh again.
Fast forward a couple of months and I’m just back from a holiday (cancelled at cancer diagnosis) and swimming in the sea and rocking my boobless bikini top (no reconstruction) around the pool and looking up at the mountains and thinking how lucky I was to be here and to have finally put it all behind me… how I never thought I would get to this place.
Don’t get me wrong, I still have moments when I worry but they are getting less and less and I can move on with the thoughts that nothing in life is guaranteed, anything can happen in a flash, so I’m going to make the most of every day.
So please don’t feel sad for us all… we are getting through it together and you will get there too - you just need to go through day by day and you will be fine.
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Lovely words which made me smile, @lynnc123, and I wholeheartedly agree. x
@lisyanthus, it’s not surprising things feel unreal, I recall that shocked and frightened feeling all too well. I genuinely believed when I was told earlier this year I had cancer it was impossible for life to ever be good again and that I would never be the same. But, the new scary world you have found yourself in is, for many, many people, myself included, only temporary. Fast forward eight months since my diagnosis, and I can honestly say I’ve never felt healthier or more content with life so there’s no need for sadness. Sure, I have occasional niggles or worries, pretty certain we all do, but they are just that, occasional. It’s hard to believe right now, I know, but things can, and very often do, get better. x
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Thank you for the lovely welcome.
I have started my exercises and can’t wait for the results.
As you say the waiting is the hardest.
I hope you are doing well.
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Lynn you are so brave and positive. I am so glad you got to go on your holiday and enjoyed your time. I find myself already reevaluating everything. You have a great outlook? Thank you
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Thank you for taking the time to reply. You ladies are so positive. I will focus on that being me soon. Sorry to be a misery, such a shock. But onward and upwards, thank you
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Thank you for all the information, that’s a great help. I will definitely bookmark and check them out. Much appreciated.
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I’m doing fine, thank you. I’m two years and four months past surgery and two years past radiotherapy and life returned to normal fairly quickly. As it will do for you. Yes you’ll be changed to some extent by the experience as you process it all over time but many women on here say that it’s enhanced their life experience. You will pass women who have been through breast cancer and out the other side every day without knowing it, on the street, in the supermarket, in the restaurant or wherever. We’re everywhere because the survival rate for breast cancer is astonishingly high. Alas the only way out is through but you’ve made a good start with surgery, the most effective treatment there is. The rest is there to add the bells and whistles to stop recurrence. Good luck on the 27th and good luck with getting this thing gone.
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Hello
Its all a lot to take in isn’t it but you are through surgery and now need to rest, recover, keep those assets supported and do the exercises
Try not to overthink what might happen because everyone’s boobies are different
Download a few box sets, read a good book, take a gentle walk every day, have a cuppa with friends
Keep waking up every day with a smile
A fantastic charity i used is Look Good Feel Better so when you are ready join them
Take care x
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Thank you I will have a look x
It is such a shock when it first happens, becoming a member of a club you never wanted to join, but there are many different options for treatment to deal with it. It is very frightening waiting for results but you will get through this and it will pass. Sending hugs xx
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Thank you for your reply. The positive outlook of replies to me has lifted my spirits, I’m so glad I found this forum at this time. I guess I am still in shock and my head is scrambling to every scenario. Big girl pants on, results on the 27th and treatment plan 
I’m so glad to hear how well you are doing since your surgery, take care x
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Hi Lisyanthus
I totally understand - I’m due for my lumpectomy and lymph nodes removal tomorrow and I’m dreading the 2 week wait for the results. The shock is real and I’m sending you lots of love. Let us know how things go for you
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Hi @glittercat
Welcome to the forum. It a great supportive and friendly place to be with others who know what you are going through.
Thinking of you tomorrow. You’ve got this.
Hi @glittercat, so sorry you are in the same club. The surgery went ok. The lymph node is the sore on for me. Keep taking the pain relief and doing the exercises.
The waiting is the worst I know.
Everything crossed for you for the best outcome for all. Let’s know how you get on. Take care lovely x
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@glittercat look like I am a couple of weeks ahead of you. Please feel free to msg me if you need a chat. Tomorrow is a good thing as in getting it removed. Huge hug xx
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that’s so kind, thank you so much. I’m taking a deep breath for tomorrow and we’ll catch up after that. sending you all the best x