I got my diagnosis yesterday and am still reeling tbh. I had it in my head that this was going to be straightforward and I’d not need chemo etc. With no family history of bc and luckily few people I know we’ll having gone through this I realise I was totally naive and had no clue what to expect! Now we’re into MRI scans and genetic testing and I feel like I’m sliding down into an abyss and there’s nothing to grab hold of to stop me!
Any one out there with a similar diagnosis like to share your treatment plan? Until they’ve done the MRI and considered the results all I know is chemo and surgery. How long is your chemo? What are the implications of a positive genetic test? How are you coping during Covid?
Much as I wish non of us was going through this, I am so glad there is a forum like this. Reading your posts and your support for each other is both reassuring and heart warming xx
Hi purple tiger mouse sorry you’ve found yourself on here. Back in 2017 my chemo plan was 3 fec and 3 t, I know other tns more recently had different chemo and I am sure they will pop on soon. Other thing you can do is use the someone like me option on here and ask the nurse facility. The genetics testing will not only give you options but other family members too if a positive result comes back. It’s a lot to take in and step by step you will get through. There are chemo threads on here read them and join up the one when you start chemo if you want too you get each other through. A book that I found helpful was surviving triple negative breast cancer by Patricia prijatel. It’s not for but it helped me. Get a thermometer ready to keep track of your temperature during chemo. You do everything your own way and what’s right for you This is your journey and there are no right or wrongs Shi xx
Hi purple tiger mouse, welcome to the forum but sorry you find yourself here. It’s pretty overwhelming to begin with. We’ve been there and understand how you’re feeling. I had stage 3 breast cancer which had spread to the lymph nodes in 2017 and after 8 rounds of chemo, surgery and radiotherapy I’ve had no evidence of disease since. It’s a lot to get your head around and a lot to get through physically but it’s all doable, just take it one step at a time. Once you have your treatment plan in place you can go on the “going through treatment” thread on this forum to chat with others going through the same. I found it really helpful and still stay in contact with my chemo buddies. Come on here if you need to offload away from loved ones where you may feel you have to put on a brave face. Best wishes. Xx
i was diagnosed with TNBC at end Nov/early Dec and started treatment just before Xmas. I just completed my chemo and I am waiting for surgery that will take place in 2 weeks time.
i am being treated in London at Barts Hospital - the person leading the team there is a TN specialist and is called Prof Peter Schmidt.
My treatment is chemo before surgery : 4XAC (every 2 weeks) + 12 weekly paclitaxel and carboplatin. Then comes surgery and radiotherapy. They also offer an additional 6 months oral chemo if you have residual cancer cells when they do surgery and have some lymph nodes involved. some centres do surgery before chemo and offer different chemo I.e (F)EC and Doxetaxel.
Barts was also offering immunotherapy as part of a trial for early stage TN - not sure if it is still open due to Covid but you may want to look into it as this immunotherapy has shown some positive results for patients with metastasis and they are trying to see if immunotherapy helps prevent recurrence for patients with early stage TN (in that case treatment is 12 weekly paclitaxel with immunotherapy followed by 4 AC).
Please feel free to ask me any questions.
I have used someone like me option on this site and have been linked to someone who had a similar diagnosis as me - we talk on the phone and she has been very helpful answering some of my questions / worries etc. I would recommend
I have also joined a very useful FB page called Triple Negative Breast Cancer UK and Ireland (TNBC) support. It’s very supportive and full of info.
Also I have found this website very useful especially the relevant chemo thread - it’s nice to share your experiences going through chemo with other women.
sorry you’ve found yourself on here. Back in 2017 my chemo plan was 3 fec and 3 t, I know other tns more recently had different chemo and I am sure they will pop on soon. Other thing you can do is use the someone like me option on here and ask the nurse facility. The genetics testing will not only give you options but other family members too if a positive result comes back. It’s a lot to take in and step by step you will 
