Cancer support thread #74 - come in, we're here for you.

[Hippiechick162]

Welcome to the new support thread for anyone who has cancer, at whatever stage of treatment, is worried about symptoms, or is waiting for tests or results.

This is the place to worry, moan, ask questions, share experiences and good and bad news, and celebrate milestones!

If you've got a loved one with cancer then your best place for support is probably on the Life-Limiting Illness board.

Our previous thread iswww.mumsnet.com/Talk/general_health/3760336-Cancer-support-thread-73-come-in-were-here-for-you

Current members, please do introduce yourselves smile

Oh @Robstersgirl, how cruel. You must be devastated. Wishing you strength.

Are they offering to reduce the other one to match, Seerosen? I'm sorry you find yourself here- it really is a shock getting a cancer diagnosis, so I sympathise with having to make these decisions while in the middle of the tornado of feelings.

Hello & welcome @seerosen x

I was a 34G and had therapeutic reduction mammoplasty on my right breast last week. So more than a lumpectomy but far from a mastectomy. Basically I've had a breast reduction and lift. I'm having my left boob done to match after radiotherapy.

The surgeon removed approx. 300g of tissue and the boob is now about 3 inches up my torso. I have to say, once the dressings are off its going to look fantastic. By my judgement it has reduced down to a D/E cup which is what the surgeon was aiming for. I am very happy to be less booby to be honest.

So if my 300g removal = a reduction of roughly 4 cup sizes, then as a rough estimate you will end up as a 32 D if you go for immediate reconstruction. So still plenty of cleavage really, but I totally understand if you would still prefer to be bigger x

Finally heard from the hospital and chosen Monday 9 March for my appointment as any of the earlier dates it's impossible to get alternative care for my DD ( who is chronically ill and I provide24/7 care for her). Secretary super nice and I'm going along prepared to have as many tests/biopsies/scans as possible on the day rather than going back later. Still hoping it's nothing and my utter exhaustion and discomfort is stress or simply old age...

@Robstersgirl, I am so sorry to hear this. Will be thinking of you tomorrow.

@Robstersgirl just saw your update and there are no words. Holding your hand.

Hello everyone. Currently 2 hours post op. Mastectomy and DIEP. The surgeon was amazing. I feel ok. Bit sore but all is well. @Trumpton you're going to be in amazing hands. Much love to you all. Xxx

Hey hippie chick glad the surgery went smoothly. Now plenty of rest for you x

@Hippiechick162 glad all went well and hopefully you will have a speedy recovery.

@Hippiechick162
Crikey , that’s amazing to hear from you so soon !
Rest up .

I did not have a good day today and slept on and off all day , just pinged awake after going back to bed at 9pm so prob won’t have a good night .
Herceptin injections tomorrow 4/18 ,every 3 weeks until November . Still got earache and bloody nose .

So my story so far......

Got a leaflet through the door in August 2012 advising they were trialling early mammograms and they'd like to invite me to one. I was 47 and due to get married at end of October. DS1 was 17 and ds2 was 12. I threw the leaflet away as I juggled the girls regularly and never found anything. Later that evening it niggled away at me and I fished out the leaflet. Went for mammogram in a caravan in Asda car park.

September I get called into UCH to see the radiologist. DH2b and I go in to be shown pictures of what looks like 4 octopi in my left boob and I had a couple of biopsies there and then. The really ouchy gun ones.

We get married late October and I'd more or less stopped worrying as they hadn't called me back. 2 days into honeymoon I got called back to see consultant- like 'Come in now, we need to see you!' You can guess the rest.

So skin saving mastectomy in December , Chemo every 3 weeks until May, with a small break in isolation for neutropenia, then 15 rads later and back to work in July. On tamoxifen for a few years and then bladder started playing up so onto exemestane.

To present day: had some blood in my wee and what felt like the uti from Hell. 3 lots of antibiotics not shifting it. GP is getting sick of the sight of me, but after spending several (9) hours in A&E due to blood in my wee and pain, decided to refer to the fast track urology, just for a check.

Raced back from a really important interview on Tuesday for the cystoscopy. Nightmare day on public transport from one end of West Midlands to the other and sitting in a gown in, as they put it; the smear position. Trying to ignore the whole undignified things going on when I heard something you really don't want a doctor to say: ' What is that? I've never seen that before! I sit up and he shows me the screen. It looks like bright yellow flowers. Very pretty, but they're in my frigging bladder! Oh and I have a uterocele as well that has to be pierced. Should have been picked up when I was a child apparently, so my kidney is likely to be damaged.

Then this morning I get the letter for a pre-op assessment on Monday. As in not even a week away! I'm screwed aren't I? I have work in 6 hours and I can't sleep. DH is working away and I'm numb. I wasn't going to google, but I did. Cases of breast cancer returning in the bladder are rare, but increasing apparently. And the treatment looks horrendous. I don't want to wee in a bag forever. I just want to ignore it and pretend nothings happening.

I've only just gone back to work after 2 weeks sick as the pain was so bad. Still is but I'm sort of getting used to it. How the hell do I get through work (emergency despatch) like this. And supposed to be hearing whether I get new job on Tuesday. And my boys....I've only told them about how I have a super-power: growing flowers in my bladder.

I just can't, I don't know: think,sleep, cope? I wish I hadn't pushed the gp for tests, I wish I hadn't t opened that damned letter.

Sorry about the verbal diarrhoea- I have no one to talk to. My parents just think I'll be in and out and it'll be a kidney stone. My DH was nearly broken last time. My youngest one; his dad died last year of the frigging flu! My eldest ran away to his dads last time as he couldn't cope properly (not blaming him) poor thing. He's still living down south. I have work for the next 6 days now. I'm on a late shift when I have the assessment on Monday morning. What the fuck do I do?

Hey everyone! It's been two years and five months since my diagnosis of stage one grade b breast cancer at age of 44. I had a lumpectomy and clean sentinel node biopsy. I had four weeks of radiation and no chemo. My radiation therapy caused a burn which became infected. I later started tamoxifen then was diagnosed with lymphedema in my left arm and hand. Intense physical therapy followed and I am in maintenance compression wraps. I developed a blood clot in my left knee and was swiftly taken off tamoxifen and was prescribed Xarelto-two days later I started hemorrhaging on my period. That summer I struggled with anemia and then I had a uterine ablation. Haven't bleed since. I'm on exemestane and quarterly lupron injections to put me in chemical menopause. Every six months I have mammography exams. Life is so precious to me now. I'm so fortunate

Oh @Robstersgirl I don't know what to say. I'm so very sorry.

Haven't been posting on this thread for ages as I'd had no news (it's taken 3 months), but have been coming on to read people's progress.

You poor thing, and your poor little girl xx

@Babysharkdoodoodood wow, you're really going through it! I found keeping myself busy during the wait helped....sounds like you may have tha covered with your job etc! There really is no other advice I can give you but I'm here if you need to whinge. Take care

Hi Babyshark - hope you got some sleep in the end. There is a great Caitlin Moran talk on YouTube where she says: “I promise you, you will only ever have to deal with the next 60 seconds”

So last year when I felt like I was drowning that was my mantra: “just the next 60 seconds. What do I need to do in the next 60 seconds?”

You must feel overwhelmed at the moment, but hopefully one day you’ll feel pleased you pushed for a diagnosis so you could start dealing with whatever “it” is. Good luck with work today x

for @Robstersgirl today. Thinking of you x.

Just a wee update from me as well, had operation on Manday, removing two lower lobes of right lung (which was the worst case scenario for the op, great...) but feeling good and recovering well. Going home today if they ever get my stuff together!
Then waiting to hear from pathology to hopefully say they definitely got all the nasty stuff out, fingers crossed. Sounds like there was a good bit of yuck down there...

Big hugs to those who've had bad news recently and particularly thinking of @Robstersgirl today

@Hippiechick162 Glad it went well. Now rest up and enjoy watching tv shows. My favourite was come dine with me, undercover boss and on Netflix the stranger is my current obsession!

@Robstersgirl Thinking of you today. My heart is absolutely broken for you. Xxx

@Babysharkdoodoodood Good luck keeping all crossed for you. Xx

@Trumpton Hope you get some sleep today xx

@peaceanddove How is your recovery going? Xx

@Sooverthemill Good luck to you too. The waiting was the worst part for me xx

@Bloodybridget How are you getting on? Xx

@Zorgothslugofdoom congratulations xx

Sorry if I've missed anyone. I hope everyone is ok? No news from me. I'm still heeling well and awaiting an appointment to discuss chemo. I'll call the hospital later as I should have heard something by now? I went back to work on Monday. HR still hasn't returned my calls from last week. My manager has told me to work from home and they'll be in touch to do a return to work, but then I've told him I'm to have chemo and I've heard nothing since. That was Monday. They did however pay me which was amazing and decent of them. My parents have done something absolutely wonderful and paid off most of my debt for me. I've still some left, but my dad is sending me the monthly payments every month so that when I do start chemo I'm not worrying about money. I can't express how fortunate and grateful I am for their help right now. I honestly thought I'd end up with bailiffs at my door (not joking)

My daughter has taken it well although she's not impressed I'll have no hair and thinks I'll look like a man 😭😂 She's a very bright child, but can bottle things up and it'll come out at a later date which isn't always a good thing. I'm talking to her lots so I'm hoping she's going to get used to the idea. She's always had a thing for playing with hair. She ducks her thumb and will play with your hair fir hours. That's been her thing since she was born. She told me yesterday it's the smell she loves lol I feel a little upset with that, but it is what it is.

Love to you all xxxxx

@Babysharkdoodoodood I’m so sorry you find yourself in this thread. This waiting will be the worst especially as you have been through it before. Fingers crossed it isn’t anything to worry about and your flowers are nothing sinister.

@BrowniesAreSuper hopefully they got everything and glad to hear you are recovering well.

Just had my first appointment with genetics team. It’s all very interesting but then general jist is they are testing me for a ridiculous amount of things gene related to see if they can answer why I have got it so your. Takes about three months so I’m going to attempt to not think about it until then.

2hrs until my 4th and hopefully last chemo. I’m dreading it. I hate it. I don’t want to have to crawl up the stairs cause my legs don’t work properly for days. I don’t want the stabbing pains that wake me up in the middle of the night. I don’t want the nausea, the hands that hurt so much. And just the general feeling crap crap crap. But I can do it.

Hope everyone is as well as they can be.

I am worried, I am in increasing discomfort ( like when you realise your period must be coming) and gripy pains in my tummy and back ache. I have no idea if the pounding headache is stress or related. Every twinge makes me fearful. I know this because I've been through it before. I may not have cancer. I may not have cancer. But what if I do? My main worry is that I provide 24/7 care for my very ill ( chronically ill) DD and we can't get any agency to help because she is too complex. I'm so worried I might be too ill for a while to look after her.

@Sooverthemillthat must be so hard to have to worry about your daughter on top of everything. Some people don’t react too badly to chemo and treatment.
For me I go down for about 10 days and although not well enough to look after my 18 mth old in that time I do get myself on the sofa and am still with him when I’m feeling I’m to it. Would it be possible to get help from an agency as they wouldn’t be on their own you would still be there and I charge/giving instructions but they would physically be doing it when you aren’t up to it?

@squiffy I had chemo before and it laid me low for a very long time ( I'm had Hodgkins lymphoma). Obviously I don't know what/ if it would be the same with different cancer. And the issue is DD has multiple chemical sensitivities which includes her being unable to cope without vomiting or massive pain with smell. So none can wear anything perfumed at all or smoke or drink alcohol and some foods that we eat 2 floors down make her vomit ( we now have a limited diet!) and screening that out with agency staff has proved impossible. The can't wear deodorant for example. It means my DH would have to stop work to look after her if I was too ill. Last time I had cancer was the year before she became ill and I was still recovering at onset. We ill have to cope alone, if need be

Babyshark
I have just finished 33 sessions of Radiotherapy for Bladder cancer, having refused Chemo and the bladder bag. There are different types of it and I had the stage 3 which was muscle invasive.
I was told it is never a secondary but then a man - told me he had it as a secondary to bowel cancer but is an easy cancer to deal with.
It is a seldom cancer for women and if caught in the early non-muscle invasive stage, no chemo or Radiotherapy is required. I had TURBTx2 within 6 weeks of each other which involves "shaving" off the "superficial cancer"". They put you out for this procedure and is done through your Urethra.
MacMillen have booklets for Bladder Cancer which I have.
Fingers crossed you have the early stage.

@digerd Thank you. And thanks everyone else and good luck.

Will go and check out the Macmillan site for online brochures.

Apparently the sticky out growths are easy to treat, it's the flat ones you have to look out for. Really don't want a bag and can't face chemo again.

Another 2 letters today. My ct scan appointment on a Saturday! And the a dexa scan as I've got osteoporosis from the exemestane for breast cancer. It never ends.

I felt like shit today. Only 2 hours sleep, so I was really struggling at work. And then about midday the pain struck again. I just wanted to crawl into a ball under my desk to cry. It just hurts so bad. It's fine when I get home as I can just sort out the fire and snuggle on the sofa.