Newly diagnosed and wanting a family

Hi
I have just been diagnosed. I don’t know all the terminology that is being used yet but I have 1 grade 1 lump and am due to have a biopsy for a 2nd area in my right breast next week. I have been having fertility treatment (drugs) since february/march time and was hoping to go for IVF soon. Also having reflexology and acupuncture.
i don’t know if it is an oestrogen based cancer yet even, but have been told that it is unlikely I would be able to try for a family for a number of years possibly up to 5.

I’m 43 and don’t have time to wait. I’m in shock from the diagnosis and the double whammy of maybe not being able to have a baby too.

Has anyone else been in this position who could give me some tips on what to ask the drs and work out what risk there might be if i put of treatment of radio/chemo/drugs after the lumpectomy or mastectomy?

Many thanks

Hi, I really feel for you as I was in a very similar situation as you when I was diagnosed, age 37, in 2003. I had surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, but declined tamoxifen as i wanted to try for a family. I also felt I had no time to waste. My dx was er+, grade 3, lymph nodes affected. My onc told me as soon as radiotherapy finished, ie in feb 2004, that I could start to try for a family. In March 2005 I fell pregnant, but miscarried within 6 weeks. Then I fell pregnant again a year later (age 40) and that time gave birth to a girl, now 4 and starting Reception year at school this Thursday! Ours is a bittersweet story, though, as I had bone mets diagnosed in 2008 when our daughter was only 18 months old, so she’s never known me without my illness, and it has affected what I have been able to do with her. And I live with the uncertainty of not knowing how much time we will have together.

I think if yours is a grade 1 lump then you’ve a better chance of a better outcome (ie no spread). But beyond sharing my story with you, I don’t know what to suggest you ask, as it was all a long time ago for me first time around, and i’m sure both thinking and treatments will have moved on since then.

I hope you manage to steer a way through this.

Alison x

Hi Snowie,

I was diagnosed with grade 3 triple negative invasive ductacl carcnioma 31st March last year and went on to have a lumpectomy with sentinel node biopsy at the end of April followed by 6 x FEC-T chemotherapy from June until October. I was 35 at the time, 2 weeks before my wedding and we don’t have any children.

As you can see from a blog post I wrote a while back ( community.macmillan.org.uk/blogs/like_mother_like_daughter/archive/2010/08/23/7th-april-2010-sobering-words-about-fertility-options.aspx ) it’s all been a bit sobering as we weren’t able (due to my cancer being grade 3) to have embryo’s frozen prior to my starting chemotherapy so it was a case of doing what we could to try and protect my ovaries. Due to my diagnosis of triple negative they were able to give me Zoladex to shut down my ovaries throughout chemo. Depending upon your diagnosis this option may or may not be available to you.

My periods restarted about 6-7 months after chemo finished and my fsh hormone levels are ok. After much ado we’re finally off for embryo freezing next week and then will wait the two years after chemo before reimplantation. We have been warned that the chances of success aren’t great given my circumstances but it’s our last ditch attempt because I’m due to have my ovaries out as soon as the embryos are in the freezer (I have a genetic mutation predisposing my to both breast and ovarian cancer).

I hope some of that information helps you. I’m not on here much but wish you all the best.

Mia