Confused and upset

KathiM

True staging is done at removal...
I was told "this doesn't look cancerous" to a lump I sported for 11 years, mammo'ed every year.

Needle biopsy surprised my surgeon...it WAS cancer, invasive ductal, but he said "lumpectomy, but your lymph nodes look fine. If you wake up with drains, well, they were involved, but they really don't act like it".

Woke up to drains. Sentinel nodes involved. My surgeon (BTW he has specialized in cancer breast surgery for over 10 years...not a newbie) was talking with a hangdog look, said "well, had to take second set of 5 nodes, we'll know from pathology in a few days".

Second set was clear, but still I had chemo/radiation because of the sentinel nodes.

Harder still, this was my second cancer in 6 months...I got the 2-fer...lol!

I guess what I'm saying is that sometimes those little critters are hard to find...ask to look at your mammo...it's VERY confusing!!!

Welcome to the family, please keep us posted...

Hugs, Kathi

RE

Dang cancer anyway!
Kat, I am so sorry that you are having to go down this path and I know how scared and confused you are right now. I have a few things in common with you and wanted to share. When I was 17 my mom was first dx with bc and eventually would have 2 radical mastectomies. She also had a ton of chemo which I drove her to and from. Way back then chemo was not as advanced as it is now and the treatments were rather harsh on her. After her first dx she lived another 24 years and fully enjoyed her life. I also assisted in her caregiving (while in chemo myself) so I know how that messes with your thoughts. My first cancer was in 97 (I have had it three times, stages 2a, 4 and 2a) second in 98 and third in 2007, had it not been for my surgeons the chemo and the rads I am quite sure I would no longer be here. It really amazes me how far they had come from the 70's chemo to chemo today. In the span from 97 to 07 treatment has improved and the meds to make it all more tolerable have improved. I will agree that it is not a cake walk for sure, but it is certainly doable and well worth doing. There are a great many wigs out there for you to choose from too so heh maybe you could get a new style or a new color just to change things up a bit. I loved my wigs because I have super thick hair and the wigs were actually lighter than my real hair. I also choose to wear bandana's a lot as it was quite comfortable for around the house. Please trust me when I say I believe you can do this and we will be here to support you along the way.

My best to you,

RE

Christmas Girl

Kat11 said:

The surgeon is still saying
The surgeon is still saying lumpectomy at this point. I hope so because I do not have a plastic surgeon on board yet. Ok I will wait for surgery to be over to get all the answers. Thank you so much

Waiting isn't easy...
... Many here (including me) would say waiting for that first big step, often surgery - like for you, is the worst of all waiting periods.Of course and as with everything else - each patient & their personal circumstances are unique. I, too, had lumpectomy - didn't require a plastic surgeon afterwards.

Continued best wishes to you, Kat11.

Kind regards, Susan

Christmas Girl

Kat11 said:

Mastectomy or lumpectomy I
Mastectomy or lumpectomy I just want it over. My hands and wrists are sore from needles and IVs. I think thats it,no more test's except on the 20th I have a biopsy for the clinical study I agreed to. I did ask all the questions, or I thought I did, and I thought I had all my answers until today when things changed. I guess I was hoping to luck out here and only have the tumor cut out and call it a day. My mom had breast cancer many years ago. Maybe 30 or more, and times have changed but I remember so much. My mom died in 1991 not of breast cancer, she kicked that without any treatment except surgery. She just refused Chemo or rads took pill. She died of a new cancer and that was lung. Nothing to do with breast they told us, and I remember that it was very hard on everyone. I was her caregiver. So I think back on all this stuff and well I scare myself. I hate change and life as I know it is changing. My friends and Family God bless them try real hard to help and I make them think they have. Thank you for letting me vent.

Venting...
You are most certainly allowed to vent here, ALL you may want & need to do! Because, simply put, we truly understand.

Kind regards, Susan

Jeanne D

Kat11 said:

Jeanne - I had the
Jeanne - I had the mammogram, then ultrasound, the core biopsy, MRI and then next week another biopsy (for clincial Study )with ultrasound. I can only hope to be as brave as all you have been. I am positive, I know I will do just fine.
Kathy

Kat
You will be brave..you will be fine! Just think positive and know that you must fight this awful disease with everything in you. Ofcourse you will feel down, you will cry, you will get angry..that is normal. We all have been thru that and still do. Allow yourself to have any and every emotion..you are entitled to it. And, if you need a sounding board, this is a good place to do it at. We are all here for you Kathy!

Kat11

Feeling better today. Thanks
Feeling better today. Thanks for all the information ( much needed ). I don't know what to think so I am depending on all of my friends here. I am so glad you all are available to me. So I am on to the next challenge, with the understanding there will be many more to come, and you will be right there with me to explain everything lol. Thank you
Kathy

mimivac

confusing results
Kat,

Things are very confusing right now and that sucks. As you can see, this is not a rare occurrence. My mammogram showed 1 cm. mass, biopsy said 2 cm., MRI said 4.5 cm. It turned out to be 2.6 cm. with no node involvement. Often, if you have an MRI after a biopsy, the mass can look much bigger than it actually is. My oncologist told me of a case where an MRI detected a 10 cm. mass. In reality, it was 2 cm. I know it's frustrating, but you'll have to wait until the pathology report to really know.

Don't think about chemo right now. If and when you need to do it, you will get through it. Like Moopy, I had 4 months of aggressive chemo (we went through it together) and got through it just fine. I know you feel let down, but you don't know the whole story yet, so try not to panic. This journey is best taken a day at a time. Cry, vent, scream. You have every right. It will be OK.

Moopy23

Kat11 said:

I am really scared of chemo
I am really scared of chemo and the hair thing. I am not happy in my body as it is, so to think of hair loss on top of it, Yuk. You guys look good though. I hope I look as good.Thank you Moopy. Did you by your shoe's yet ???? lol

Early Days
Hi, Kat. Of course you are scared of chemo. We all were, too, at some point, whether we ended up needing it or not. But Mimi is right--it is early yet, and you many not need chemo at all. And if you do, it may be a mild version. (They do exist.)

Also, as Re and others have posted, so much has changed over the years. Today, there is a treatment for most every side effect except, I think, lack of energy and the hair thing. The only good thing I can say about hair loss is you don't have to shave for awhile, and getting ready to go out takes much less time. I suppose I have to add the suspense of what color and texture you new hair will be.

But, again, you may not need chemo. I will be thinking of you and hoping that you do not.

Yep, I did get some shoes. My retail therapists insisted, you know.

mmontero38

Kat11 said:

Feeling better today. Thanks
Feeling better today. Thanks for all the information ( much needed ). I don't know what to think so I am depending on all of my friends here. I am so glad you all are available to me. So I am on to the next challenge, with the understanding there will be many more to come, and you will be right there with me to explain everything lol. Thank you
Kathy

Kat, we hope we can help.
Kat, we hope we can help. We're here for you whether you just want to ask question, "cry with us" or vent. You can count with us. Hugs, Lili

djteach

Hi Kat11, I don't have much
Hi Kat11,
I don't have much to add except welcome. Sometimes doctors get it right and sometimes they don't. I always consider that, if I trust them, they are giving me the best knowledge that they have at the time. That is why there are so many tests and results. Although my tumor was only 2.6 centimeters, I am a stage IV because mine had already metastesized to other parts of my body. My doctors did not link my back pain to my cancer until 3 wks. after my last surgery.

Please don't feel I'm trying to scare you. I just want you to know that until they do the surgery and test lymphnodes, it is an educated guess. Stage one through three are doable, some doctors even use the word curable. Being told that you have b/c no longer means a death sentence. I know I can't be cured---Yet! But I think I have a life sentence. There are treatments and drugs that can keep me around for a long time. Breast cancer is a part of my life-but it is not my life. You are now a member of a brave group of women and men called warriors. You will be a great warrior.

Love and gentle hugs,
Donna

CR1954

Kat11 said:

I am really scared of chemo
I am really scared of chemo and the hair thing. I am not happy in my body as it is, so to think of hair loss on top of it, Yuk. You guys look good though. I hope I look as good.Thank you Moopy. Did you by your shoe's yet ???? lol

My onc.........
Just before my first chemo, my onc sat down and looked me in the eye and said...you will hate me for what I am about to do to you. But he then said...however, when you have completed your treatments and you realize what you have come through and how hard we have worked to get you healthy and keep you healthy, you will like me again.


I fell in love with my onc at that moment. Because he was very straightforward. And I knew then that we were a team and no matter how difficult things might get, I could count on him to help me get through.

Now that chemo is over, and I feel good and my hair is coming back, it's true, I do also LIKE him again!

You will make it through Kat. I have no doubt!

Hugs,
CR

Christmas Girl

CR1954 said:

My onc.........
Just before my first chemo, my onc sat down and looked me in the eye and said...you will hate me for what I am about to do to you. But he then said...however, when you have completed your treatments and you realize what you have come through and how hard we have worked to get you healthy and keep you healthy, you will like me again.


I fell in love with my onc at that moment. Because he was very straightforward. And I knew then that we were a team and no matter how difficult things might get, I could count on him to help me get through.

Now that chemo is over, and I feel good and my hair is coming back, it's true, I do also LIKE him again!

You will make it through Kat. I have no doubt!

Hugs,
CR

Cindy...
I love your onc, too! :-)

Kind regards, Susan

HoneyBunny

Jeanne D said:

Kat, who told you the MRI
Kat, who told you the MRI looked good? Your oncologist, radiation oncologist or surgeon are the only ones that should tell you anything inre to your tests. And quite honestly, the only thing that can truly tell you what you have inre to size of tumor, er or pr positive, type of cancer, if nodes are clean or not, if the margins are clean or not..is the pathology report, and, that is done after your surgery. I understand you are scared..we all were and are. This is a rough road to take, but, we get thru it and you will to. You just have to keep a positive attitude and be willing to fight bc with everything you have in you. My mammogram showed microcalcifications, which tipped them off that something was wrong. I then had more intense mammograms, followed by an ultrasound and an ultrasound core biopsy. That biopsy showed them I had dcis and idc. But, only after the surgery, did I know the exact size of the tumor, what stage I was in, if my nodes were clean and what treatment would be best for me. And, that came in the pathology report. So, try to relax, educate yourself inre to treatments, talk to your doctors and come here for support. You can do this...we did..you can!

Oh, by the way, my tumor was .8 cm and clean margins and nodes, so, I had a lumpectomy and just finished 37 radiation treatments. I may or may not take the Tamoxifen for 5 years. I am not making that decision for a few months. I feel lucky compared to what a lot of the women here went thru.

Chemo?
JeanneD,

Were you HER2/neu positive? Our diagnoses are similar. My clusters of microcalcifications led to a 8mm tumor. No lymph node involved. ER POSITIVE, too. Progestrone negative. HER 2 positive.I knew surgery, radiation and tamoxifen were for sure but won't know about chemo until monday.

Since our diagnoses are similar I wondered if you had chemo? I think the chemo with such a small tumor and no lymph involvement is probably not the unusal protocol but it might be because I am HER2 positive.

Kat, one day at a time. I was just diagnosed April 14 and it was a total shock--no lumps--just routine mammo! Biopsy showed IDC and DCIS. Anyway, I was putting a lot of stock in the surgery but noW that the surgery is done, I am anxious for the appt. I read somewhere that there are various milestones when we are more anxious than at other times. Surgery is one of them. And the road seems so long to us newbies!!

Take care! Linda (HoneyBunny)

Piggies

Listen to this one...
On May 31, 2008, I had my annual mammogram. I was 44. I got a call saying I needed to have additional films done. Needless to say, I got hysterical as that never happened to me before. Everyone told me to get a grip on it as it was no big deal to need more pictures done, I tried not to panic. In the beginning of June 2008, I was told that I needed to have a biopsy as there was something not quite right. On June 25, 2008 as I was waiting to go into surgery for the biopsy, they were taking additional films and the radiologist at the hospital inquired as to what I was doing waiting to have a biopsy done because as far as she was concerned, there was nothing but "normal tissue" showing up and there was no cancer. Mind you, this was the doctor/radiologist at the hospital, not MY doctor. I was thrilled. I ran out and told my husband and his reaction was to say "see I told you there was nothing to worry about, this doctor here does this all day long and if she's saying there is nothing there so be it." I spoke with MY surgeon right before I was to go in and informed him of what I was just told. He told me that he was having a difference of opinion with the doctor at the hospital and that he thought I should have the biopsy anyway. Of course I went through with the procedure as I trusted him and was already prepared for surgery. My follow-up appointment with MY surgeon was July 7, 2008. Although I was anxious for the results, I wasn't too concerned and nervous because I kept going back in my mind to what the doctor at the hospital told me, that it wasn't necessary for the biopsy because she saw no cancer. You can imagine my shock and horror on July 7th when MY surgeon informed me that it was BREAST CANCER, early Stage 1. My husband and I were in shock. I couldn't believe it. I had a lumpectomy on July 16, 2008, the Oncotype DX test done which indicated that I had a low recurrence score, no lymph nodes involved and I only needed six weeks of radiation which I started in September 2008 and finished in mid October 2008. NO CHEMO. I'm now taking Tamoxifen and have been lucky with no side effects. I'm glad I listened to my doctor and not the doctor at the hospital who by the way had no business telling me not to have the biopsy. Another woman might have just gone home and not had the procedure done. If I would have done that, I would have had big problems.