Hi bumblegirl,
I am sorry your mum has been diagnosed with BC. So much to take in isn't it? For your mum and for you and the rest of the family.
Mammograms and ultrasound scans provide different views of what is hiding in our breasts - and some tumours may show up in one type of scan but not the other, so this may well explain why the measurements for your mum's tumour show up differently on her scans. An MRI should give a better picture. It will help the surgeon figure out how to operate so all the tumour is removed in one go. (My tumour never even showed on a mammogram)
The anastrozole is a 'hormone tablets' part of your mum's treatment. The ER8/8 part of her diagnosis means that her tumour thrives when it can feed on oestrogen. The anastrozole stops her body from producing oestrogen, so the idea is that the tumour stops thriving. Whether that means it grows slower, or stops growing, in your mum's case I don't think anyone can tell. There is probably a good leaflet on anastrozole on this website - search for aromatise inhibitor, of which anastrozole is one type. It has been shown to be a very effective drug :-).
I am sorry about all the confusion and worries you are having, with things being not quite as straightforward as they may have seemed before. I hope once your mums MRI results are back and they have agreed a treatment plan, things will get a little easier for you all. It sounds like her surgeon is being thorough - and so he should be
🙂 your mum deserves the very best.
Does your mum have a breast care nurse whom she can call if she has any questions? She may be able to tell her a little bit more about lumpectomy and scars, and mastectomy and reconstruction. The breast care nurses often will be able to show some pictures of what the results could look like. This may help her decide what to do.
Also, from my own experience, it is very wise to take a little notebook to each meeting with any doctor, and write down any questions your mum may have before the meeting, and note down what was said at it straight after the meeting. So nothing gets forgotten. Waiting rooms tend to turn our brains to mush, and breast clinic waiting times can be lengthy...
About the armpits - it sounds like the consultant has not felt any problems with the lymph nodes. That is good news. If he had felt something then the likelihood of there being cancerous cells in the lymph nodes would be high. He may still need to do more checks to be sure there is no problem. He will want to make sure he is not missing anything in helping your mum to get rid of the cancer.
You are not on your own, nor is your mum. There are lots of lovely ladies here to help, and answer any questions. Also, have you tried the helpline? They are fantastic.
Wishing you both the very best, and hope the treatment goes smoothly, and you may enjoy a little bit of Christmas together
🙂Christine
