********The 37th Tamoxifen Thread, Fun and Tears in "Cancerland" *****

[Copthallresident]

Trolley Rolled over and "Its a small small world" playing on the ipod on repeat.

Betsy, for you, I reckon. Like you say, knowing more can be a relief in a strange way.
Yes, most people have all sorts of extra tests, so that's normal enough.
Had an MRI before? It won't be much like that, as they will probably want you face down on a sort of stand thingy so your boobs are clearly visible. And they put an injection of marker into you at one point via an IV tube. Took about half hour in there for me.
Me, I was diagnosed 2 1/2 years ago with invasive ductal in the left boob. Lump at the back of it. Couldn't feel it until it was quite a weird shape. Nothing in nodes but mine was a grade 3 (rudely behaved) HER2+ (even more rudely behaved) cancer so they threw everything in the cupboard at me - chemo first, then lumpectomy because chemo had shrunk the lump - then radiotherapy, then Herceptin (which hated me, which is very rare). It worked, too. We think. But of course it's five years of checkups before anyone can say for sure.

betsy am 4 years down the line, having being diagnosed with invasive ductal c grade 2, 2.4 cms and no node involvement. I had lumpectomy and sentinel node biopsy,then radiotherapy and tamoxifen..in Sept. 2012 I was diagnosed with lung mets and am now on continuous chemotherapy- in cycles of 3 weeks- 2 weeks of twice daily tablets followed by a week off. This,starting tomorrow will be my 13th cycle and the last scan showed that the chemo had shrunk the mets (there are about 9 across both lungs) which is a v good thing so far - next scan very soon.

Betsy - so sorry that your news was not good today (I know you were sort of expecting it but it's still a shock to know for certain),but you sound as if you are doing well with getting your head round it all.

I am almost five years from DX, (so an old lag, but this place is like the Hotel California ) - I had a grade 3 stage 3 tumour also in lymph nodes and had mastectomy, lymph node clearance, chemo, radiotherapy, a years worth of herceptin (tumour was HER2+) and am now on tamoxifen.

Your tumour sounds a bit like mine in that I could not feel a lump (and neither could my GP - I went to GP when my nipple started turning inwards, and he said he could feel 'hardness in the breast' Lump turned out to be right under the nipple and quite deep - which was why I couldn't feel it.

Anyhow - although no one wants to be here, now you are here you are very welcome, we've kept a place warm for you on the sofa, and will ply you with cake, and . No questions are off limits or TMI on here -so anything you want to know about, just ask away, - someone will usually know something helpful xx

Gigs - I bet it is traipsing round Disney that has done it - you can end up walking miles at those kind of places without realising it.

So more crappy waiting around Betsy ?
That's honestly the worst part of all of this , the constant waiting around .

I had MRI , CT , bone scan , chest X-ray at the start of my diagnosis .
Standard for my hospital to get your base line .

I was diagnosed May 2011 with stage 4 grade 3 breast cancer .
12/19 nodes involved , so had mastectomy and node clearance 2 weeks later .
6 months of chemo , and 6 weeks of radiotherapy .

Unfortunately I was found to have lung secondaries , so that put me in the terminal camp .
But , one nasty post op infection kicked my immune system into action . And I was found to be in spontaneous remission !

I just have cts every 3 months now to check that nothing new and nasty is growing .
Got my last results a couple of weeks ago . And I have an enlarged lymph node . They aren't sure wether this is cancer or some other infection . So we are just keeping an eye on it .

Phew , that was a long one

Gigs aching is payback for actually being at Disney ....

Oh and Copt , I was amazed at the sheer glamour of your DDs shagpad place of conception !
Was that vinyl wood effect walls I noticed ???

DS has just phoned to say that he and DDIL have had their anchor stolen form their garden - they had a big old metal anchor sort of on its side as a garden decoration and its been pinched in broad daylight - and it was set in concrete too, so someone came armed to smash the concrete and get it out while they were at work - what fuckwits some people are.

(Am v cross because they are having a bad week - DDIL was due to have an op yesterday and it was cancelled half an hour before she left for the hospital, and she'd booked two weeks off work etc etc for it all, and was upset) Then some git steals something from their garden.

what a bastarding crap thing to happen kk

I think stealing from people's garden's has become the in thing - our neighbours had their lawn mower stolen last year, and I know people who've had garden furniture and even plants taken.

That's crap Kurri and how brazen of them too

KK arrrgh!!! An anchor? What the fruit are they going to do with a ruddy anchor?!

That's rubbish kurri but I know that they have been warning people locally about garden theft.

My wound Opened up again and dh reckons needs a stitch . Have rejected his idea of going up hospital here as 1.dont fancy explaining in French 2. The rarity oft cancer means you get a certain amount of zoo exhibit treatment which pisses me off. So looks like a and e trip when I get vback. Bloody wounds .

Back to tv now

Maybe they have a boat nicked from another garden ?

Gig - wouldn't surprise me if they had nicked someone else's boat!

grr about leg, - I sympathise about not wanting to go to the hospital though, when do you get back? - do you think you can manage until then?

that's crap KK, the gits!

hope you get your leg sorted Gig - would steri-strips work - at least until the morning?

(I always avoid our local A&E on a Fri/Sat night if at all possible - always full of drunks and druggies :( - it's the one on 999 what's your emergency if you watched that series!)

Was thinking much the same about a and e Betty - we have steri strips do could

Check the local scrap yards kk
Pound to a penny it's been sold for scrap !

Gigs when do you come home ?
Don't leave your leg too long .
(Or just keep pickling yourself with pink champagne - not jealous at all !)

Good idea Betsy , re the steri strips

Bugger about needing a stitch gig.
And nicking an anchor guess it is for the metal. Anything metal needs nailing down at the moment, we have regular visitors looking for scrap and not so scrap items.
Betsy I'm nearly 2 years post dx. Invasive ductal right side. Grade 2 no nodes. Lumpectomy, radiotherapy and tamoxifen then back to work.
24th wedding aniversary today. No flowers :( spent day digging garden...

Completely agree Betty- will get dh to fix it up (we are away til tomorrow ).

I was dx with soft tissue cancer last feb- had lumpectomy , radiotherapy and chemo as I had mets on lungs and bones. Have also just had op to fix damage on neck by mets and also remove small lump on leg ( where original op was) which is giving me the trouble. Far more trouble than major op on neck!

good idea topsy - will suggest that to DS.

Definitely worth a try with the steri strips Gig, I gummed my hysterectomy wound back together with steri strips when it opened up at one end, and it mended - told you I was a doctor!

No flowers? :-(

Home tomorrow so it would be less than 24 hours. Any longer and wouldn't risk it but its covered, clean etc

Happy anniversary jchoc. Hadn't thought of scrap metal issue but that's a good point.

oh - happy anniversary Jchoc, - shame about the flowers though (did he forget?) - buy yourself a large bunch tomorrow is what I would do (and throw in a box of chocs for good measure)

Gigs sorry about your wound steri strips do sound a good idea. Laughed at your boat comment !
Safe journey home tomorrow
Jchoc happy anniversary, big one next year then ?Boo to no flowers :(
Betsy how are you doing ?

Happy Anniversary Jane
I'd buy you flowers if you were my wife ...