what happens next?

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tan39
tan39 Member Posts: 49
edited March 2014 in Breast Cancer #1
Hi all
just about to have last chemo, no radio needed, all i know is i am to take tamoxifen. Can anyone fill me in on what exactly happens after last treatment, is it straight to 3 monthly checks, if so what do they check?? i do have a september appointment with plastic surgeon regarding breast reconstruction but thats it. thanks ladies, Tan x

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  • chenheart
    chenheart Member Posts: 5,159
    #2
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    Firstly, congrats on finishing chemo~ WHOOO-HOOO!!!
    You are pretty much correct; your Dr will schedule to see you every three months, and schedule mammograms every few months as well ( if you still have breast/breasts), you will have labs drawn prior to each Dr visit, and you will take the Tamoxifen. As you get farther out from treatment, and your lab results and mammos etc are clean and clear, the Dr visits will happen every six months, and eventually you will get a mammogram once a year, just like the rest of the general population! My surgeon , after 5 years, scheduled an MRI on my un-affected breast, and when that came back clean, I was "dropped" as her patient! YAY!
    I am just finishing 5 years of Arimidex...I had a lympectomy, 3 of 15 positive modes, chemo and radiation. In a nutshell, this is what happened to me, post chemo. There is always room for variables, of course, but generally speaking, I imagine this is what will be your story as well!

    Hugs,
    Claudia
  • seof
    seof Member Posts: 819 Member
    #3
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    I think it is likely that you and chenhart are correct, but, as with everything else pertaining to cancer, each idnividual case may be different. I have finished chemo and radiation and bilateral mastectomy, have 8 out of 9 months of Herceptin left (once/3 weeks) then reconstruction. Once recon. surgery is done, I suppose I will be ready to phase out Dr. visits, so I guess I still have about a year to go before I am asking your question.

    Congratulations!! seof
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    #4
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    Hi Tan, I finished chemo, and my first follow-up was in 3 months. For first 2 yrs(anniv. was in April)I had a mammogram every 6 months and saw either surgeon, radiation oncologist, or medical oncologist every 3 months. I had an MRI at 3 mos. and will have another one this week. After I see my surgeon in Oct. he will see me only 1x a year until year 5. Eventually, as I understand it, I will be seeing just radiation and medical oncologists yearly and eventually just the med. oncologist. After Oct. I will be having mammograms yearly again(just like normal women!). I am in a clinical trial so I think I will be followed for a long time. Which is ok with me---a little extra security never hurts:o) I have blood work every three months due to the trial, but I don't think that is standard unless there is a particular concern/risk. I finished chemo in Nov. 06 and my white blood counts are just getting back to a respectible level, so remember that everyone is different and your docs will follow-up and watch over you to make sure that you are recovering well. Congrats on getting through with chemo---for me that was the worst part. Take care, Eil
  • scaraher
    scaraher Member Posts: 20
    #5
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    Hi Tan
    I just asked my dr the same question yesterday. I do have to have radiation so for me that comes next but as for everything else my dr said that becasue I am planning on a bilateral masectomy after radiation there is no need to do follow up mammograms but i will be having my tumor markers checked every 3 months indefinitely because of my age (29) my dr feels he should stay on top of it. He also said he will throw in a cat scan every now and again just to check. I also will be going on tamoxifen. I hope this helps
    Stephanie

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