Have been loitering on forum since first posting before Christmas and getting some great comfort from topics. Thanks to some lovely ladies who have pm’d me and kept in touch. Was finally diagnosed on 9th Jan with Grade3 25mm IDC, no hormone results yet. Ultrasound on 23 Dec and ‘manual’ investigation on 9 Jan suggested no node involvement (surgeon said 30% chance of them being wrong!). My biggest fear atm is waking up with a drain. Because of size and location of lump, surgery on 3rd Feb is WLE and SNB (with blue dye day before) +/- node clearance. Rads ‘likely’ and Chemo ‘possible’, any hormone therapy will depend on +ve or -ve, I’m 55. I am trying hard to keep things in perspective and not letting my imagination run away with me, as until I know what I’m dealing with and treatment options, I’m running the risk of scaring myself.
My questions are probably silly, but I’ll ask anyway! I have been getting mild stabbing pains around the ‘lump’ area - have been convincing myself this is psychosomatic?! And partly dreading that means the BC is on the move…Also, before diagnosis I walked/ran 1-2 miles a day on my treadmill. Have not felt like doing this recently, but want to pick it up again from tomorrow - does anyone know if this would be OK? Keep forgetting to ask my BCN as other questions overwhelm me
Feeling a bit sorry for myself, but have lots to look forward to including my daughter’s wedding in August (although I may have to wear a wig).
Sorry for such a long post, but it feels like I’m in the right place Funniest thing happened to me this week was pre-op assessment the nurse used a BP monitor like you buy in the chemist that strangled my arm and gave an alarmingly false high reading. When she changed to a more hi-tech machine she apologised for asking me to move so that she could plug it in as the ‘cuts’ meant that they couldn’t afford to replace the batteries!!! I did have to laugh and hope it wasn’t a sign of things to come!
Thanks in advance to all you lovely ladies out there…hugs xx
I am also 55, diagnosed at the end of May 2011 with a stage 3 grade 3 with node involvement. Had chemo first, 8 of them! then mastectomy and node clearance, next is 15 doses of Radiotherapy.
I had stabbing pains - that was what made me check myself but it hadn’t spread past the lymph nodes. If you feel like running, run. If you are unsure then ring your BCN.
NHS may be making cuts but as far as I am concerned they spared no expense in the treatments that I have had. As an example, the day after I had chemo, the district nurses came to give me an injection to boost my white cell count. I was told that the injection costs about £700. They make cuts where they can but not where it matters!
If you have any questions then ask away!! And…wigs aren’t so bad, I have worn one since August 2011.
hi there, sorry you find yourself on this site, but you have done the right thing. the ladies on here are amazing with support and advice. the helpline is very good too, and i have rang them a few times, so please do so with any questions.
re the stabbing like pain, if they did a biospy when you had your initial tests this could explain it? it can leave you a bit sore for a good few days.
I also had the odd stabbing pain, but I’d had biopsies and was told that the pains were almost certainly as a result of the biopsies - my poor boob was black and blue after them, so I wasn’t surprised.
I too had stabbing pains both before and after diagnosis… If you have a wle you will def get rads if you end up with an mx rads are usually not necessary… Chemo will depend on grade, stage and what receptors are present.
The ony silly question is the one you don’t ask!
If you want to run and feel like running then go for it… But listen to your body and rest when you need it.
Hiya please try not to worry I had stabbing pains after diagnosis but think it was cos of the biopsies I’d had done.i had snb and did have a drain they’re nothing to worry about they don’t hurt but are a psin to walk around with.
Xx
I also had pains through the core of my breast - prior to diagnosis and during treatment.
I was given a booklet on fatigue by my BCN and it said the best thing is to exercise for half an hour every day. Something that gets your heart rate up. For me, during treatment I was knackered and breathless just walking my dog! But if you’re up to a spin on the treadmill go for it!
I had WLE back in April and then another op in June to remove more lymph nodes. I used to go to the gym 4 or 5 times a week, doing classes and running and after both ops I returned to the gym, taking it easy to start with but it didn’t take me long to regain my fitness. I think because i was fit i recovered quite quickly after each op, as long as you listen to your body and don’t push yourself to much, I was even back to doing my boxercise classes as well.
Funniest thing happened to me this week was pre-op assessment the nurse used a BP monitor like you buy in the chemist that strangled my arm and gave an alarmingly false high reading. When she changed to a more hi-tech machine she apologised for asking me to move so that she could plug it in as the ‘cuts’ meant that they couldn’t afford to replace the batteries!!! I did have to laugh and hope it wasn’t a sign of things to come!