Role of breast surgery in newly diagnosed metastatic cancer.

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Hi all,

 

I was diagnosed in March this year with Metastatic breast cancer which has spread to my bones (HER 2 neg, oestrogen +).

 

I am 30 years old and it all came as bit of a shock, as there was no primary diagnosis previously. I kept going back to the doctor with back ache, eventually got fed up and went to the hospital for a scan, and the bone defects showed up of that! It took a long time to be diagnosed as breast cancer, as the breast lump was very small and first couple of doctors missed it.

 

Since then it has all been a bit of a whirl wind, as I’m sure you all understand, and I’m just starting to make sense of my treatment plan.

 

Currently I am taking Zoladex and Letrozole as hormone therapy and then denosumab for my bones. This all seems to be working reasonably well at the moment, as my scan results shown slight improvement in the bones and I feel a lot better.

 

My main query is regarding the role of surgery (lump removal or mastectomy) in women that did not have this done as part of their primary treatment, and whether this benefits people with secondary cancer. I have posed the question a couple of times now in my appointments with my Oncologist about the possibility of having surgery and he seems quite reluctant to go down that road. He seems to think it obviously won’t cure me, so what is the point. I too do not want to but myself through an unnecessary operation if I don’t have to, however, I am reasonably well at the moment and so if surgery did have any benefit in slowing down the spread of the disease then to me it would seem sensible to peruse it.

 

I would be grateful if anyone that has been in a similar position could comment, or maybe let me know if you have had similar conversations with your oncologist.

 

I would also like to mention, that it has only really been the last few weeks that I have started to look at some of the thread topics, and I have to say I find it really useful and in a lot of cases very encouraging that some women seem to be getting on so well with their treatment.

 

Thankyou very much.

 

Amy-Lou

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So sorry to hear of your diagnosis and at such a young age Amy. I was diagnosed with bone mets and breast cancer when my hip spontaneously fractured and I’m er+ and her2- I was in my early 40’s at the time. I have not had my primary tumour removed and I have had, so far, eleven years of living with this. My primary has hardly changed in all that time, most of the time it’s been small and hardly noticeable. Best wishes. X

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Sorry to hear of your diagnosis as well. I would be interested to hear the answer from your Onc as I haven’t been brave enough to ask the same question. In a nutshell, after extensive local recurrences all in the same area of my reconstruction, I went to my hospital in may/June 2013 with another lump in my armpit. A CT scan showed BC in a hilar lymph node on the same side (chest wall) This has reduced to minimal with oral chemo, Capecitabine.
The lump in my armpit is hardly mentioned, but I would like it removed. As you said, it surely must help prolong life? I haven’t asked because after so much surgery, it would be difficult to do in my case. Do post if you get an answer, and the very best of luck with your treatment x

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Hi,Amy,I was diagnosed with primary and bone mets at the same time last June. I asked for a mastectomy and was refused. I fought for nearly a year to have one which I had this June. My primary lump which was being treated with letrozole and zolodex was growing so it was decided I was “allowed” to have a mastectomy. I thought everything was ticking along smoothly. I asked for a CT scan which again I had to fight for. Unfortunately it showed major bone progression and liver and lung mets. Also when they did the pathology on my breast it was discovered I’d changed from high ER to triple negative.
I’m really angry with my hospital as I believe having the mastectomy when I wanted it would have kept me stable for longer and possibly stopped the spread for longer.
Huge hugs,Helen xxx