Please come and tell me your positive breast cancer stories.

[peaceanddove]

So just been diagnosed with invasive ductal carcinoma, picked up by a routine mammogram. It's been caught very early apparently, but will be having a lumpectomy followed by radiotherapy. I will also have to take something like Tamoxifen for five years afterwards.

To say I'm shell shocked is an understatement. I don't want to Google too much incase I read anything more upsetting, so would really really appreciate stories from anyone who has been similarly diagnosed but got through it and is now back to normal. If you can help, thank you so much xxxxxxxxxxxx

@peaceanddove I started Tamoxifen but found the fast plunge into menopause at 33 too difficult. It also seriously affected my mood - to the point of feeling suicidal. I went against medical advice and stopped taking it. It might be the wrong choice but it is what I needed to survive at the time. I also had one less Chemo treatment and stopped taking Herceptin early. I was quite young and the cancer was advanced and aggressive so they took an equally aggressive course of treatment. Sometimes you just have to do what works for you.

Thank you hypatiently. Can I ask how long ago you were diagnosed?

Sure, April 2013.

Gosh, didn't realise it was so long ago. How do you feel nowadays?

And I fully understand your decision to go for quality of life Vs feeling suicidal. I also felt suicidal due to lowering oestrogen during peri menopause. Hormonally induced depression is a real issue and can be very serious. What was the reaction of your medical team when you told them you were stopping Tamoxifen? Was your cancer estrogen receptive too?

I was diagnosed with triple negative bc in 2006. I had chemo, lumpectomy and radiotherapy. I have been fine with no recurrences so far.

Diagnosed with stage 1, grade 3 ER/PR 7/8 breast cancer in 2011 when I was in my twenties.

Translated into English, stage 1 means no spread beyond the breast, grade 3 is how the cancer cells differ from normal cells and 3 is 'most changed', ER/PR 7/8 meant it was a strongly hormonal cancer.

I had a lumpectomy, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, with tamoxifen afterwards. I managed two years of tamoxifen before coming off it because the side-effects (for me!) really affected my qualify of life.

I've since had another child, returned to work full-time and been promoted. I can go weeks without remembering that I've had cancer. It feels like it happened to someone else.

It's a shitty diagnosis to have but it it's found early, it is cureable. Treatment is but a moment in time. There's no going around it, you have to go through, but there is life afterwards and it can be good.

Thank you grey lady, that's exactly what I need to hear

That's really interesting and reassuring to read beefarseer. I'm a little confused about the stages and grades as yet. Mine is a stage 2, it is invasive, but they really don't believe it has gone anywhere else. So not sure if it would be a grade 1? It is ER though but don't know how strongly.

Can I ask what side effects you had from Tamoxifen please? It's so great that you are doing so well now. And a new baby too! Congratulations! It's great that even having had ER breast cancer your body was fine with being flooded with oestrogen when pregnant again.

I very much hope I cope as well as you have done x

My friend who was diagnosed before Christmas said there is a brilliant FB group - breast cancer sufferers and survivors. She can't log on here and asked me to tell you.

Hi OP. Just wanted to say that both my Mum and my sister have had breast cancer and both are fine. It is around twenty years ago for my sister and ten, I think,, for Mum. Good luck with your treatment.

I am waiting for results but they have already booked the surgeon as they said they didn’t want me to have to keep waiting and worrying but said if it isn’t cancer they can cancel the surgeon but she said she would be very surprised if it wasn’t.
It’s 9mm and she said my lymph nodes look healthy.
Reading all your messages is making me feel a bit better
Positive thanks 💕

Hi, just came across this thread, idc stage one,er/pr positive. Was diagnosed last summer 2020, double mastectomy, chemo for 3 months and on letrozole since.. physically I feel fine but I'm not coping well emotionally, finding this thread and reading all the amazing stories has given me hope! Can I ask what follow up checks you all get? Apart from mammograms? Do they do regular/annual CT scans to see if it has spread? thanks

@Santa01 No follow up tests other than annual mammogram. I also have 5 year access to a breast care nurse and instant access to the clinic if I find anything. There is a FB group called UK Breast Cancer Support Group - for sufferers and survivors, might that be helpful?

Hi
Just need a bit of support please. I’m a healthcare working in oncology, so I should be coping better!
I had a routine annual mammogram 5 weeks ago and got recalled due to a new area of calcifications. Had a stereotactic biopsy and awaiting results. Radiologist said he’s 90% sure it’s nothing but my health anxiety is through the roof.
I have two children who I have always been 99% of their career/support as their dad moved away and sees very little of them.

Diagnosed with stage 2, grade 3 invasive ductal carcinoma almost exactly one year ago. Was a recall from a routine mammogram and at the recall appointment they were certain enough to book an appointment with the consultant without waiting for the biopsy results to come back. My mum went through the same thing 10 years earlier and is fit and well.

Two operations (one lumpectomy and then they need to go back in to get "clear margins" - apparently this happens in about 30% of cases). Two weeks of daily radiotherapy and now on Letrozole for five years - Letrozole is what they give us post-menopausal ladies. I had no spread to the lymph nodes and avoided chemotherapy thanks to "oncotype sequencing" which is a relatively new development (I think), where they take a small sample of the tumour and work out the relative benefit of chemo over radiotherapy.

I have young teenage children and told them once I knew what the treatment plan was. I also told their school and they had good support there as well.

Letrozole side-effects were annoying at first but seem to have settled dpwn - mainly diarrhea and hot flushes.

It is worth knowing that once you have a cancer diagnosis you are entitled to free prescriptions. It is worth filling out the forms as soon as you are able to.

The cancer support thread here is also really good for connecting with other ladies going through similar.

I also suffer from hormonal induced depression which got much worse during perimenopause. I now take an antidepressant alongside the letrozole as I really want to keep my estrogen levels low and give myself the best chance of not having a recurrence.

Ihad ductal carcinoma in situ 25 years ago, and then n the other breast four years ago. Lumpectomy and radio therapy for both. I took tamoxifen after the first case and tried letrozole for the second, but gave up with my consulates agreement in the second instance.

I had no reaction with the tomoxifen, with the letrozole I was anxious and teary, which can be a side affect. And so very unlike me it was really obvious.

Good luck, yours has been caught early, so you have every chance of a good prognosis

DM had BC 5 years ago and same treatment. The only issue with the tamoxifan was hair thinning (probably wouldn't have been noticeable had she not had really fine hair before) and a cough. No other symptoms at all.

@RocioMartinez just realised this threads 2 years old now, you might want to start a new one of your own? Take care anyway.

@Kshhuxnxk. Thanks

I had oestrogen positive breast cancer 8 years ago to the day! Mastectomy and 5 years of tamoxifen and ok 🤞

Just wanted to share, was diagnosed at 43, this time last year was starting chemotherapy and this year I managed to try and be as positive as possible.
I’m not going to lie, it is really scary at times and I worry about what the treatment (lumpectomy, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, zoladex and exemestane) might do to me long term. I worry about recurrence and being here for my kids, but I’ve been told by others, later down the line that time helps to get stronger.
Advice that I’d share that hasn’t been touched on in this thread I think: if there is a Maggie’s Centre near you, do think about visiting for support and help. There are also courses that you can do for free, after treatment, that help with moving on. Don’t bottle things up and brave your way through, allow yourself to feel sad, scared or whatever. It’s also hard for DP, though they can sometimes not always say/do the right thing. We told kids, very matter of fact and feel that was the right thing to do.
Sending hugs and positive healing xx