Breast Cancer Now Forum

Hi My name is Gail and I was diagnosed with TNBC in July 2008 aged 44. First I had 6 pulses of chemo followed by node removal wle and 30 radiotherapy sessions and im still going strong. Just had a clear mammo and thats me nearly 3 1/2 yrs since all treatment etc finished. Every day is a bonus andItry to think positively though I cant deny I still have doubting days even now and I defy anyone who says thy dont some where along the line. Everybody keep your heads held high and your chins up. ... View more

I must gave been one of the lucky ones. I had a critical illness policy and it paid out a month after contacting the company. I had only taken the policy out 6 months earlier. Don't give up on getting the money Gail ... View more

There are no words. I send love and hugs and my thoughts are with you and your family Gail xx ... View more

hi I fully understand those who dont like the tickled pink campaign by asda as having breast cancer means you have nothing to be tickled pink about. Eveyones feelings and thoughts are very important on here though I myself dont have a problem with the campaign and have bought tickled pink products. Its a now a well known phrase associated with raising money and awareness for the breast cancer cause and most people now know what it stands for.I dont think for one minute they take the disease lightly. My breast cancer is triple negative and if the tickled pink campaign helps raise the funds for the research that finds the cure then im all for it. Thats just my personal opinion and does not detract from those who dont agree with the campaign. gailxx ... View more

Hi HurdyGurdy I also have the clips in which were needed for my rads. I also have a flat hard area there where the tumour used to be Ifind it hard to check my boob as it has no feeling and it cant feel my fingers checking it.Sometimes whne i am sore i think i cant count and touich the clips individually!!! My surgery was nearly a year ago on the 12jan 09 and its still hard so you are not alone in what you are feeling love Gail xxx ... View more

Hi Reading all the posts made me smile as i see me in nearly every one of them!!! I was diagnosed in july 08 with a triple neg breast cancer with lymph node involvement. My treatment finished at the end of may 09 and thought I would feel relief. Like so many of you i have been lost, emotional, angry etc since I finished my treatment and have found it hard to move on. Its only in the last month or so that i have started to feel more like me though having breast cancer has taken the old me away for ever as i feel it has changed me.I dont think you can be the same after such a devastating diagnosis My friends have all been great but sometimes i feel they dont understand how i feel. I cant be positive all the time though I feel they expect it so I smile and say oh yes im positive about my future. Tomorrow (monday 4th jan) im going back to work after 18mths off and im not looking forward to that. Im dreading the tiredness and emotional stress my work will bring. I work in a busy intensive care unit as a staff nurse in the hospital where i was treated so it will be hard to leave it all behind me. The only good thing I take from it is that its the last piece of the jigsaw that gets my life back into its "normal" routine. Weshall see how it all unfolds. Like one of the other ladies mentioned im scared i cant cope and have to go off sick again. U would think working for the health service they would be understanding but all they are interested in is "the organisation" as the lady at hr dept kept reminding me. She thought i was off for an excesive amount of time.....thats the support i got!!!! Ok i WILL be POSITIVE. Sorry this has turned into a rant but i know you will understand love to all you GAIL XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX ... View more

hi just want to pass on my condolences. When someone dies we all feel it here as all in the same boat of uncertainty. Im 45 and was diagnosed with a triple neg breast cancer in july 08. I have a young son of 11 and i count every day as a blessing. You will find strength from within. love to you Gail xxx ... View more

hi there Im 45 and was premenopausal prior to chemo and had noperiods for a yr & thought that was me as having hot flushes etc. Well my period came back last week with a vengance....pouring is the phrase i would use and absolutely gutted 2 of the milder words of choice that i uttered. Im now waiting with baited breath to see what happens next month. Was sure it wasnt going to come back because of my age but wrong. Will just have to wait and see what happens next. Everyone says i should be pleased as it means my body getting back to norrmal but i dont feel that way. Its the one thing i didnt miss and the haviness really drained me. oh the joys of being a woman. love gail xxxxxxxxxxxx ... View more

hi there just want to wish you luck for starting the dreaded fec. Im a fec veteran. I had mine aug sept and oct last year and then had 3 taxotere which personally i found much much worse. Lost my hair 2weeks after first doseof chemo but has now grown back. Had a few trims but finally long enough to have my highlights done on thurs so will look like me again when i see myself in the mirror!!! Yes chemo is the pits of the earth but you will get through it and i can hardly believe a year has passed since mine started. You w illhave good days and bad but keepyour chin up. With the support of some of the remarkable ladies on here you will get by. love Gail xxxx ... View more

hi there I dont think they can do that. You cant be off sick and have holidays and then revert to sick if you have a line til sept. I woek for ayrshire and arran health board and i had 15 days hols left at the end of the financial year but i am only being allowed to carry 6 forward and not pleased with that but contacted my unuion and they wee useless. I am still off work and have been for just over a year and now on unpaid leave which is a burden but not yet fit to go back but getting there. Its awful that we have to cope with this terrible disease and with the crapwork throws at us. As someone elsessaidits treated the same way as being off with a cold etc. Keepus posted as tohow you get on. Regards GAIL X ... View more

HI THERE My name is gail and I just wanted to let people know that I have taken part in a documentry for the bbc about breast cancer. I was followed about by a video camera having everything filmed from mri scans,chemo,surgery my rads etc and also my family were filmed. The aim is to inform the public about diffrent treatments surgeries that are done and how cancer impacts all aspects of your life and those around you. 2 other women took part in the documentry. (Im the bald 1!!!!) I really just want to let you know that it is on the telly MONDAY 31ST AUGUST ON BBC 2 AT 9PM and hope lots of people watch it. Its called..........MY NEW BREAST!!!! The girl who made it herself had breast cancer 3 years ago so she had been there done it and got the t shirt so to speak and i now have friend for life in donna. I agreed to do it cos I felt if it helps 1 person with their diagnosis then it was worth the intrusion into my life. At the moment I am well and dont fall into the category of people you were looking for for your documentry. I hope to get some feed back on the forum as to what people thought so looking forward to any comment. love gailxx ... View more

Hi Anne Thanks for that i will give the kelp a try. Anything is worth a try and it might just help. Mammogram was ok today and not too painful. The worst bit was the pressue on my underarm as the nerve pain was awful the way my arm was placed. now a torturous wait for the results to come back. love Gail xxx ... View more

hi there I havent posted on this for a while and just wanted to let you all know that im still about!!! I am 6 months post surgery and cant believe thats a year since I had mydiagnosis. Today I go for my 1st mammogram as part ofmy 6 month screening and not sure how i feel about it. want it but dont want it! Waiting on the result will be torture as not getting result tili go to the breast clinic on the 28th. i think i will have to phone and try and get the results before that. I normally work in the hospital (still off sick) so my collegues can check the results computer for me if need be. Other than that i'm well. Still taking a lot of pain killers and gabapentine for nerve pain but slowly trying to cut them back. Toe nails slowly recovering, they grow back then bits fall off them again. Hair thicker than it was before but much darker (and greyer!!). Most of the time I feel positive but still have weepy days when ithink why me... what next...how long do have. I see a counsellor now who is fantastic and has really helped me. I hope everyone elseis feeling well and still hanging in there. love to you all GAIL xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ... View more

hi there Just want to say im feeling a bit more positive this week than the way i felt last week when posting my comments. I have had a good week and with good friends family and work colleagues around me i will get through it and start to move on. Many thanks for the kind words and encouragement. love Gail xxxx ... View more

hi there i had 3 fec and 3 tax finishing in dec 08. Hair is growing back tho slow and had first veryy small trim on sat so very sorry to hear about your hair not growing back. I also wasnt told of all the side effects of the drugs i was being given. I lost my toe nails and fingernails peeled off. Although fingrnails have grown back they are very weak and continue to peel and break. My toe nails or should i say the lack of them is a different story. No sign of them coming back and toes still have a numbness that they say can take up to 2 years to resolce if at all. I also seem to have a lot of joint pain and take voltarol and gabapentine daily and occassionally tramadol as well. God knows how long this pain will last. My point is that i agree that we are not given enough information on what they are pumping into us. Gail xx ... View more

hi there My name is Gail and im a 45 yr oldmother of a 10yr old boy. I was diagnosed with tnbc in july last year. I have had a lumpectomy and node clearance. They took 9 nodes and 4 were positive. Good clear margin obtained thankfully. I have just started my rads and have 23 sessions still to go. Its good that there is finally a thread for tnbc. Like others i thought not having to take the hormones was a good thing until i started reading into tnbc. I actually had to make an apt with my oncologist as had never been told this is what i had and it felt a bit like having my diagnosis all over again. She really pulled the rug out from under my feet going on about high risk poorer prognosis etc and have been on such a downer for the last coiuple of weeks. I want to be positive but its very hard and im finding it very difficult to get my head round it all. Im hoping that this web site and the inspiration from those of you in the same boat as me will help clear my head and get me on the positive route again. i look forward to hearing from you all. Gail xxx ... View more

hi there I'm from Ayr and was diagnosedwith triple negative breast cancer in July last year. I am just about to start radiotherapy. I love nice coloured fancy bras and I get so down by the choice of balck or white bras and hee haw else!!!! Its now that we need to feel feminine and the choices are poor to help us do this. I would be interested in any service that was available in helping me find lovely good fitting bras gail xxx ... View more

Hi there I finished chem in dec 08 and had numb toes with black toe nails which 5 off have now fallen off. At the begining of taxotere nails and toes very very sensitive but now improved. I am left with the numbness which gets worse after walking a lot or having an alcoholic drink!!!! Toes are warm to touch but to me they feel freezing inside. Its the only way I can describe it. They arent sore any more but its so uncomfortable. The joys of peripheral neuropathy. Asked the onc. when i was last at the clinic and could take up to 2 years to get better. Seems a common complain. I also have ridges on my nails from the chemo and my finger nails kind of peeled off and now just growing back tho very soft. ... View more