Breast Cancer Now Forum

Hi all Oh it's horrible isn't it. But it can improve over time - I've been on Anastrozole for 2 years now, and it's definitely got better. I still throw the covers off several times a night, and put cardigans on and off and on and... My oncologist suggested sage which I used for quite a while - I used drops/tincture but you can get tablet form too. It helped a lot, and I stopped taking it, but think I need to go back on it cos my thermostat hasn't been working well lately. River x ... View more

Hi Angela Don't people say that ex-smokers are the worst?! I'm no expert on all of this but I expect that if you weren't smoking, it might help the healing. We all heal in different ways and at different rates, but eating the right things and taking a few supplements to boost repair is a good idea. Are you taking any vit supplements? Vit C especially. Surgeons don't always have an interest in nutrition, but I think it would be worth talking to somebody about good foods for healing. Lots of fruit and veg, not too much sugar, low alcohol.. these things can help. (But they can be difficult to do!) It does sound as though you are pulling the skin when you get up and down. Can you raise the seat height a bit? (I only ask cos I had to put extra cushions on the settee for my Mum in law who finds it hard to get up) I don't come into BCC very often these days, but I'll look out for your progress. River ... View more

Hi Lelly It's a while ago but I remember those nerve pains - they were quite shocking and left me speechless, they were so acute. I don't think anything helped in terms of pain relief, but they tended to only last for short periods - real stabbing pains. I certainly didn't wear a bra for some time - it was too uncomfortable. I wore secret support vests for a long time, and went up a size. Give it time - it's the best healer. ... View more

Hi Angela. I'm so sorry that you've had such a tough time. I had bi-lateral skin sparing mastectomies with Beckers implants (expandable)and it went fine. I had reduction at the same time, with 'anchor' scars, so my surgeon had better access than you describe. I had a haematoma the night of my surgery which needed an operation the following day to fix it, but then it was fine. I'm 2 years down the line now. Have you asked for a second opinion? - you are entitled to it. ... View more

Hello lady M I don't visit this site these days much but just saw your thread and had to respond. I had multi focal mucinous carcinoma which was grade 2 and an invasive ductal carcinoma which was grade 1 - I don't do things by halves! All of it was strongly oestrogen (ER) positive, and progesteronePR and HER2 positive as well. None of the lumps were very big - from 2mm up to 9mm and I didn't need to have chemo. I'm on Arimidex - one year down, 4 to go! Good luck with your next op - it seems neverending doesn't it. Take it all one step at a time. All the best River ... View more

Thanks, Lucy A friend of mine finds Vit E helps, and I found acupuncture helped too. ... View more

Hello everyone Try sage. My oncologist recommended it. I'm on Arimidex and the flushes and night sweats can be bad, but sage really seems to help. You can get sage tablets or drops, from a health shop. I put the drops into my fizzy Adcal, and it takes away the sickly sweet taste which is good! I ran out of sage for a little while, and noticed things got worse again, so it seems to work for me! River ... View more

Hi Samm and Maggie I hope I can lift your spirits... I was diagnosed July09 with DCIS and some invasive cancer in my left breast, surgery didn't get clear margins and a mastectomy was recommended. I decided to have bi-lateral mx and recon, which was done in December09, with expandable implants. Now 6 months on and they are fine. I'm still aware of them, but not all the time. The scars have faded brilliantly and I'm waiting to have nipple recon and to have the expander ports removed. I'm sure that once you've had your expanders inflated things will begin to feel better, Samm. Will they replace them with silicon implants? Or are you having another type of recon. It's still early days and it takes time to get used to the new you - and there's still a way to go. You've eliminated risk - I felt that was very important. And having the bi-lateral has the advantage of them both being the same - though I realise this may not be the case for everyone. Hope you feel more comfortable soon. River ... View more

An alternative to Soya milk is oat milk -the brand is Oatly. I use it for delicious smoothies with strawberries, blueberries, raspberries linseed, l-carnitine, l-glutamine, vit c powder etc - it's a great energy boost. But my main point is to introduce Oat milk as an alternative to Soya - and I couldn't drink it with dairy milk - it would be too rich. ... View more

Hi Kenni Just wanted to say hi and I understand how you're feeling to some extent - I had bi-lat mx and recon last December. I'm older than you and I don't have children and so can't understand totally, but know that it will all be alright. Just take it one step at a time and let your bro look after you when you get there. Deep breathing helps to calm me down and one thing that helped me in hospital when I was worried was 'Keep calm and carry on'. Thinking of you River x ps. I'm not on here very often these days, but will look out to see how you get on. ... View more

I didn't have the same recon as you, but had a seroma and haematoma after my first surgery last year. I think it's always wise to get these things checked. It may be a seroma which they may or may not want to drain. Every case is different. If you have redness or it's hot it may indicate infection which would need sorting out with antibiotics. All in all, worth getting it looked at. River x ... View more

Oh dear this is all worrying. I've been on Arimidex for nearly 4 months and it's hard to know what causes my tiredness (I've overdone things big time in the last 10 days and have learnt a lesson), my hot flushes, my headaches (normally dehydration or not eaten enough) and my stiff body. I feel and look like an 80 year old when I get out of bed or up from the sofa. My GP has put me onto Adcal for the Vit D - my levels are low, which could be the reason for some of my complaints. So hopefully my bones will be protected with the calcium. Mum, Aunt and Gran are all osteoporosis sufferers. I'm appalled that some of you weren't warned about potential side effects by your oncologists. Mine went through them, and said that if I have a bad time, it'll be easy to try something else. I got the impression that Arimidex was the drug of choice, but there was no doubt that my quality of life should not suffer. River x ... View more

Hi She I typed a reply to you last night and lost it and was too tired to do it again. So I'll type this somewhere else and copy it back! I had bilat mx and recon in Dec 09, 5 months ago. I had Becker expander implants which were expanded only twice. I've still got the ports - I'm going back to see my surgeon in a month or so, and will hopefully plan the next stage of nipples and removing the ports. My nipples were removed and I had a reduction too. I'm very pleased with the results - the scars are doing well and there's a bit of a droop. I'm a lot older than you at 51, and my breasts were still pretty good but beginning to go a bit south, and they were too big. So there was an upside to the crappy cancer problem. One mx was essential and the other risk reducing and in many ways I think it's been easier to cope with having 2 looking and feeling the same, albeit different. Anyway, I can't comment on the Permacol but as you say, it wouldn't be offered if there were any risk. My implants are tucked under the pectoral muscle at the top - about quarter/third of the implant - and then he used a dermal flap - just a thicker layer of the breast skin really. I didn't want to use my back muscle, and like you, didn't have enough tummy to make even one boob. I was prepared to eat, but he said no! I'm sure you'll be ok to work after 3 months, but perhaps not full time. I started back after about 7 weeks, but only 2 short days a week, in the office, and built it up. I don't work full time anyway. I agree about the lifting, you need to be careful because of the stitches - internal and external - but you'll be able to build it up gradually. You'll be doing your exercises straight away which will help your strength. I walked as soon as I could and trundled up and down the corridor regularly - it really helped me feel better after the anaesthetics. I think it's very unlikely your stitches would burst unless you did something really silly! You'll be able to listen to your body, and take it step by step. I prepared with a really good diet - 7 or so fruit/veg, limited alcohol, organic where possible, low dairy etc. And I was quite fit. I'm sure it helped with my recovery. Lots of luck, and I'm happy to help if I can. River ... View more

Oh I hate this site at times!!! I've just typed this reply 3 times and lost it! We lived in Jersey 10 years ago for a few years. Never had any serious health probs, but know pwople who have had breast and other cancers. Consultants go over from Southampton and other UK hospitals, and any radiotherapy is done in S'ton. GPs are private so you pay to visit, but not too much (probably gone up since we left). And prescriptions are private, but often cost less than an NHS prescription charge. Not sure how chemo works, or how much tamoxifen or AI drugs would cost. We loved it there and walked on the beach at least once a week when we could. We both worked there but always had a slight holiday feeling! Do some more research - if you go there with work you might have some cover anyway? River ... View more

Well done! If you had your name showing, I'm sure my hubby will have cheered you on - I missed it cos I was at work on Sunday, but we're always out cheering people on. I've done the Moonwalk a couple of times (pre BC) but am in awe of people running the 26+ miles! River x ... View more

Hi I wouldn't start taking aspirin without checking with your GP/onc. I agree - it's a real concern taking different drugs and supplements - I think that even the medics don't know half the time, but there are some better known no-nos like St Johns Wort and anti depressants. I think the best thing is always to check with the professionals. River ... View more

Hi all Linda I'm on the same drugs/supplements as you - I've been on Arimidex since January and have just been prescribed CALCIUM CARBONATE AND COLECALCIFEROL CHEWABLE TABS 1.5 GRAMS+10 MICROGRAMES(400 UNITS) following blood tests which showed a low Vit D level, which can appaently cause similar symptoms to menopause and Arimidex - aches, stiffness, tiredness etc etc. I had a dexa scan before starting Arimidex and my bones were slap bang average for my age and weight/height or whatever they base the judgement on. But with my mother, aunt and grandmother all suffering from osteoporosis, I'm happy to be taking the calcium. Not started yet - the chemist was shut when I walked along there this afternoon! River ... View more

Hi all It's a bit late to tell this but you might be interested. I went for an ovarian screening appointment last Weds and I'm now on the UK FOCSS trial - UK Familial Ovarian Cancer Screening Study. I was lucky - Weds was the last day they were recruiting onto it. The study is being run from 32 centres in the UK and a number of centres in the USA and they intend to put the results together. It is to find out 'which are the best screening tests for women at high risk of ovarian cancer and how often women should be screened'. It involves a scan and 4 blood tests for CA125 each year. But that will end when the study ends at the end of 2011. I felt very fortunate to be recruited - I'm happy that I'm contributing to a study (ironically, my Mum took part in two studies for ovarian cancer years ago - and then she got it 3 years ago!). Also I can defer a decision about an oopherectomy until I'm ready, but the scans and blood tests will hopefully pick up anything to worry about in the meantime. I think I'll end up having my ovaries removed, but all in good time! Hope everyone's well and enjoyed the Easter weekend River x ... View more

Well done! I didn't post before you went back, but was really confident that it would be much easier once you got there today - or at least once you got home tonight. I had big surgery in Dec - bilat mx & recon - and went back part time towards the end of Jan. 2 days per week and only 6 hours, which has gradually built up. I can honestly say that while I'm at work, I rarely think about BC. Everyone keeps telling me how well I'm doing, but it's just doing what I feel like doing - and that's the important thing - do as much as you feel up to doing, one step at a time. That's a BIG hurdle you've got over today - well done! Love River ... View more

Hi Wubbly You may have gone to bed by now, but I just thought I'd ping a response. I've had haematomas. The first after a segmental mx in August 09, when I had a seroma too. My surgeon got small amounts of 'old' blood on a couple of occasions. I remember it being quite firm underneath as you describe. After my bilat mx in Dec, I had a haematoma and had to have emergency surgery to sort it out, the next day. Keep an eye on your temperature and definitely call the BCN in the morning. If it is a haematoma, they may leave it to sort itself out, but sometimes it needs to be removed. River ... View more