Hi Everyone
I’ve just been diagnosed with invasive cancer in my left breast. I’ve been booked in for a masectomy in a couple of weeks.
it all seems a bit unreal - anyone out there who’s going through the same? I’m 39, self employed artist from Essex
thanks
Hi Nat
So sorry that you have had to join us. I was diagnosed 5 weeks ago and it has been like a rollercoaster ride. I had an WLE which showed I had 8mm invavise ductal cancer. I then needed another operation to check my lymph nodes because the cancer was grade3.
Got my results last week and my lymph nodes are clear but I am starting chemo on 6th April and then 20rads after that.
I know exactualy how you feel, it feels as if it is not happening to you and that it is all a bad dream.
I am 52 but was fit and healthy and working as a classroom assistant in a large secondary school when I got called for my first mammogram. Little did I know what was around the corner
My advice is to try and stay as positive as you can, I know this is difficult but it will help.
If I can help you with any questions please let me know. This forum is full of great people who can help.
Love Anne xx
hi nat
sorry youve had to join our club.
i was diagnosed in 2006 at 37 with IDC in right side and in 2009 at 40 with IDC in left side… im just recovering after finishing treatment and making plans to go back to work a week on tuesday… yikes!
i havent had mastectomy but had lumpectomy, chemo, rads and tamoxifen over the years… its not nice but its better than the consequences.
good luck with your op and further treatment
Lulu x
Hi Nat,
I am sure you will get many replies. I am a 41 yr old teacher and I live in east London. I was diagnosed with invasive ductal cancer at the end of Jan. At the beginning of March I had a mx and lymph node clearance (3 out of 9 were positive for cancer) and I am due to start chemo on 9th April. I had a reconstruction at the same time. I remember at the beginning I was so shocked that I could get breast cancer especially at my age. This forum has proved invaluable in terms of information and talking to other women going through similar.
It’s all a bit scary to start with and I coped by taking it 1 step at a time. I told all my family anf friends gradualy and have been amazed by all the offers of help and support…childcare, food, chocolate!
Thinking of you.
Catrina
Hi Nat,
I am about a month behind you…
I was diagnosed 1st of Feb, had surgery 20th of Feb and due to start chemotehrapy on the 9th of April.
I am 41 years young and am near Chelmsford in Essex.
There is also a thread called Essex Girls where I received lots of great advice.
If you need to speak with someone I would be happy to… just drop me a PM
Marguerite
hello nat im 30years old from london i to have been diagnosed with invasive cancer in my left breast ive had all the tests done just waiting for them to come worred im also starting chemotherapy this week to reduce the size of the tumour.
wishing you luck long life and happeness x x x
Hi there Nat and Billiegirl,
Sorry that you have had to join the club that no one wants to be in. I was diagnosed with Stage 2 IDC and DCIS just to add to the party. At the moment i am having chemo have had 2, 4 more to go and will be having surgery afteerwards. This forum is invaluable even for someone b eing here when the steroids are having a magic effect at 3 in the morning. we laugh, cry and rant together.
Love to you on the start of your journey
Louise
Hi Nat
Welcome to the BCC forums.
I have posted a link below to our new resource pack which you may find helpful, it has been designed for those newly diagnosed, just click on the link to access the order form. You can also order more information publications on the same page by clicking on the links on the same page under the ‘quick order list’.
If you would like to speak to someone in confidence please do call our helpline on 0808 800 6000, the line is open weekdays 9-5 and Sat 9-2, our team of specialist nurses and trained helpliners can offer you further support and information. Hope this helps.
Best wishes
Lucy
Thanks everyone for your support and best wishes, I feel a little less alone! I’m seeing the breast care nurse again on wednesday to find out more about my cancer - all these grades & measurements and types, its so much to take in.
she wants to know if I want to look at ‘masectomy bras’ & i don’t, I don’t even want to think about losing my breast, i can’t imagine myself wearing a stick on nipple & i want it all to go away so i can have my old life back.
sorry to be negative today
i know exactly what you mean about wanting it to all go away. I am so glad that I acted as soon as I found my lump and I told people as it would have been so easy to pretend none of this was happening, lock it in a box in my head and deal later, and if nobody knew I would have been tempted to do so. You should give yoorself credit for being brave enough to go and be checked, and getting this far down the line.
Its a scary ride we have suddenly been put on and i want to get off too. But now am just looking forward to having this stuff taken out of me tomorrow, and am sure you will have moments of feeling like that soon.If the doctor would let me see what she removed, i would jump all over it and kick it to kingdom come for what it has done to my life.
Don’t apologise for being negative, what kind of superhuman freak would you be to get news like this and be upbeat positive, “this will make me such a better person” attitude immediately!Or at all! Its totally totally totally awful, unfair, terrifying, unfair ( i said that before but I think unfair is the main thing!) and where the hell did it come from suddenly? Tell everyone to shove it if they tell you to be positive cos if you can’t be down now, when can you be, and your mindset will change in glimpses, it must do.
When i had my meeting with the breast nurse last week, she showed me lots of post op photos and different types of reconstruction and i must say they were much much better than i had thought they would be in my head. They can also rebuild a nipple apparently so it looks alright. The prosthesis felt wierd but again definitely not as horrific as i thought they would.More like those chicken fillets some women wear to boost their cleavage. My mind certainly played tricks on me beforehand. That said, its still rubbish and is a god awful situation to find yourself in. There are not enough swear words to throw at this situation, although believe me I have already used up many of them!
Take care of yourself
xxx
Ps. waiting for my results, and then the night i got my results was truly horrific and hard ( again,afterwards it was more my wrongly remembering and dwelling on things rather than because of the facts i was told), but after that i seemed to turn a corner a bit as at least things were getting sorted, hope this helps xxx
Hi Nat - Thought I’d say I’m getting my results on Wednesday too. I’m also IDC, but already know I have infected lymph nodes. Two showed as suspicious on ultrasound and a FNB showed malignant cells in one. I’ve persuaded the Consultant to let me have all the tests up front, so am having a bone scan tomorrow, already had CT scan and obviously the obligatory core biopsy: at least all of this is kept me busy…! They’re going to tell me my treatment options on Wednesday, but am imagining a MX is most likely, though the Consultant did mention maybe shrinking my tumour first with chemo before operating. Fingers crossed for you on Wednesday though Nat. Maybe we can help one another through? Sadly it sounds like we’re in a very similar place. Julie
Hello,
As my op day gets nearer, however, I feel less able to laugh and act strong for my friends and family who all just keep telling me to ‘be positive’ because they hope that will help me (and them) through it all.
I am having the sentinel node injection on Wednesday followed by a mastectomy on April Fools Day! And, much as I try to be brave and all that, it terrifies me. I think the main fear is what happens after that - the awfully long wait until April 16th for the results and then what will happen next - the not knowing is so bizarre and scary, although reading various threads has prepared me for the possibilities and realities of having chemotherapy and hormone treatment which is probably likely.
I am still trying to get used to having become a person with breast cancer though some days it still feels very unreal.
Best wishes and love to everyone,
Annette X
Hi Nat, sorry you had to join us but you will find this forum so supportive and helpful. I am 46 and diagnosed with grade 3, stage 1 DCIS end February. Had lumpectomy and SNB. Starting chemo on 21st April and feeling very emotional and that life is unfair. I agree there are not enough swear words to utter about this horrible disease. It comes out of the blue when you are feeling healthy which makes it so difficult to believe. I’m fed up of people saying be positive and how marvellous wigs are nowadays! I know they are trying to help but nothing will make me feel better at the moment unless someone has been in my situation. That’s why this is so invaluable - you can rant as much as you want without hurting your family/friend’s feelings!
We all understand how you feel and want to wish you good luck and send you big hugs. My friend was diagnosed with bc last year and she said take one step at a time - diagosis, results, treatment but it’s SO hard waiting. I am trying to be positive but inside screaming and wanting to run away. This is normal and it will get better but hard to accept at the beginning. Thinking of you.
Hugs,
Kiti xx
Hi ladies just wanted to add my support and wish you all well with your treatments.
If it helps you all i am 1 year from dx on 8th april so i do know what you are all going through. I wanted you all to know yes it is bloody scary and you feel ilke your old life has been stolen from you and you have had to join this cr*ppy world no one wants to be in. I had grade 3 invasive bc, mx, chemo, rads, oopherectomy and now on tamoxifen for 5 years. I am now seeing sergeon about reconstruction. I have had a scare in jan but turned out ok do after a family holiday …i am returning to work in may. I will have been off work 1 year and 1 week omg. I work in a school so my hosp advised not to work during chemo because of infections.
So u see life will get back to some normality, all be not your normal normality if you know what i mean.
If you asked me how best to handle this i would say, your all doing the right thing by being on here, ask questions, share experiences and make friend who will understand why your angry, crying laughing. I have so many wonderful, life long friends now that i met on here. 19 of us got together for the weekend in jan all from a thread just like this one. (see the profile pic lol) i see some of them regularly now too. Going to a 50th party with a few over easter too.
I would also say…take each step one step at a time. dont research too far ahead. if your at chemo stage research that and worry about rads or hormone therapy if and when u need to. There is far too much info to take in and your brains will already be scrambled.
You will have your good days and you will have bad days but don’t try to do it alone, my family and friends have amazed me with what they have coped with and yours will do too. your greatest support are the friends you make on here, they understand what you are going through so use them.
If any of you have questions i may be able to help you with please feel free to PM me i am only too happy to help if i can.
I never wanted BC and cant turn the clock back,i have had my bad times in the last year and i have had some amazing times in the last year too but i am so glad it gave me so many wonderful friends and i will always be glad about that. Hopefully in a years time you will come across a thread like this and feel strong enough to try and help others as i hope i have done for you today.
God i can ramble cant i, take care all of you, i will be back to check up on you, luv pauline xxx
Hi
I am 38 and have just come out of hospital following a mascetomy and recon and aux node removal. I think I was in denial right up to the point of going into theatre. Hoping someone would say STOP its all a mistake! Well now its real!! I must say every day I feel better and recovery so far has been fantastic. But again Ihave to wait for results if only everthing could happen straight away as I think the waiting is the worst bit of all! I have sat back a read alot on forums (been a great help) but been reluctant to write something denail again I think. But now I nhave to get on with it!!
Hi Tedoris and welcome to the BCC forums.
I have posted a link below to our new resource pack which you may find helpful, it has been designed for those newly diagnosed, just click on the link to access the order form. You can also order more information publications on the same page by clicking on the links on the same page under the ‘quick order list’.
If you would like to speak to someone in confidence please do call our helpline on 0808 800 6000, the line is open weekdays 9-5 and Sat 9-2, our team of specialist nurses and trained helpliners can offer you further support and information. Hope this helps.
Best wishes
Lucy
Hi Nat, just wanted to offer support. I was diagnosed in January (Grade 3, stage 2) and so am a few months further down the line. Also 39 and self-employed.
I know everyone’s experiences of this are different, but having dreaded every stage, I just wanted to let you know that things actually can turn out much better than expected. I’ve had surgery from which I’ve recovered well, in fact I returned pretty much to normal, and I’ve now just started chemotherapy, which although I was dreading this more than anything, I am also getting through with almost no ill effects as yet. Got my hair cut short before it started to help with the cold cap, got a wig (visiting the wig fitters was incredibly one of the pleasantest/fun things I’ve done in the last few months) which looks great, to cover imminent hairloss.
For me the hardest things, apart from the financial and emotional effects of it all, has been the endless worry about every possible negative outcome of each treatment. I really have found that after each initially unbearable bombshell it has been possible to adjust and carry on.
I don’t know if this is of any help, but reading your post just made me remember what it was all like just a few months ago, and I think if I could go back and reassure myself, this is what I would write!
I really hope things go as well as possible for you, and I’ll be thinking of you.
Rachel
Hi Rachel and Tedoris,
Your reassuring words have cheered me up tonight - I am going in for a mastectomy and node biopsy tomorrow. It’s hard not to imagine all the worst things at this point, no matter how much you try to tell yourself it will be okay. I just feel like I want to hide and hope it all goes away right now!
Thank you,
Annette
hi,
it is one year on from my diagnosis and reconn, and this time last year I was terrified, devasted and on anti depresants, not to mention full of guilt at landing this at my families feet. However I am now back at work ,have hair back on my head and am enjoying life, its not the same but I am a much calmer person.
I know this demon is never completley put to bed , but the mind does help in mending the body, when I look back over the past year now , I can feel a distance from the initial horror.
take care x
Nat and Julie just wondering how you both got on today (well yesterday now) with getting your results… hope your able to make some sense of them and they were the best possible in the situation.
Lulu