Hi there,
My mum (73yo) is currently undergoing treatment for a 30 mm, grade 3 triple positive IDC. Her treatment plan is 6 rounds of TCHP chemo followed by surgery and then radio.
She’s had some good news midway through her chemo cycles, an ultrasound showed her tumour has halved, which is fantastic news and has really boosted her for the next cycle.
However, she is feeling anxious about surgery and I know that she would prefer a lumpectomy. She has no idea what the plan is, and I wondered if the shrinkage of the tumour would be an influence in the decision making?
I have no idea how surgical options are decided, can anyone with a similar tumour, tell me what factors are used to decided between lumpectomy and mastectomy?
Thanks for reading (I know it’s long) xx
Hi. I’m so pleased your mum’s tumour has shrunk, the treatment is working.
I was bilateral with two separate tumours, one in each boob, a grade 1 and grade 2 0.9mm and 20mm with no lymph node involvement. My breast surgeon said the outcome for my diagnosis meant that there was no difference for me with lumpectomy or mastectomy apart from the surgeries themselves, with the later being more invasive and time consuming. I have follow up annual mammograms, only had one so far, next one due in July. If you have a mastectomy there is no mammogram, only for the unaffected boob. My breast surgeon said we try to preserve the boob if we can.
I’m sure your mum’s team would have looked at the size, grade, position and size of boob to decide which operation is best. I would suggest a call to your mum’s breast nurse to talk it through, obviously your mum should be on the call unless you have a health power of attorney. As she is still having chemotherapy, you may still have a few months until surgery.
You can call the BCN nurses on 0808 800 6000 to talk through options as well.
Best of luck to your mum.
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Hello
Your mum’s team will offer her surgery based on her cancer size, grade, type and position in her breast.
I had 3 cancer types - 2 in one breast and 1 in another - and was initially told I would need a mastectomy on one side and a lumpectomy on the other. However, I was also told that the lumpectomy would leave my boob looking a very strange shape and that if the margins weren’t good enough I would then have to have a mastectomy, so I pressed to have a double mastectomy straight away and my surgeon agreed to it. I was really glad as a) I felt more confident that all the cancer was removed with a double mastectomy and b) I didn’t have the worry of further surgery.
Maybe your mum can ask the surgeon what her breast is likely to look like after a lumpectomy so she has an idea.
Obviously I can’t advise on the difference in recovery between the two options but what I can reassure you is that having a mastectomy was for me nothing near as awful as I had built it up in my head to be. I only needed painkillers for 48 hours, was up and about the next day albeit a bit tired, healed really well with no complications and great scars. It was the easiest bit of my treatment journey.
I wish your mum all the very best with her treatment. X
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