What do you consider your cancerversary date?

joannstar
joannstar Member Posts: 403 Member
in Breast Cancer #1
Is it when you were diagnosed, had first or second surgery, completed chemo, completed rads or what?
There seem to be a lot of dates to choose from!

Thanks for your opinions.
JoAnn
«1

Comments

  • Brooklynchele
    Brooklynchele Member Posts: 123
    #2
    Date
    I'm glad you asked this question because I have the same one! My lumpectomy was 6/30 but I received the diagnosis/pathology on 7/5. I never know what date to use either!
    Michele
  • joannstar
    joannstar Member Posts: 403 Member
    #3
    Brooklynchele said:

    Date
    I'm glad you asked this question because I have the same one! My lumpectomy was 6/30 but I received the diagnosis/pathology on 7/5. I never know what date to use either!
    Michele

    Perhaps
    we should celebrate them all? Then our lives would be a constant celebration!

    JoAnn
  • Rague
    Rague Member Posts: 3,653 Member
    #4
    Whatever day you choose.
    Me I have to as far as I'm concerned. Aug 8 as that is the day I was DX'd and basically started the journey to starting Chemo 17 days later. Oct 21 as that's the day of suregery and teh Cemo had done it's job and had shrunk and gotten margins so Surgeon was able to 'geet it'. To me then the next batch of Chemo and rads were just being a good housecleaning to get any dust thta might have been hiding.

    Just how I see it.

    Susan
  • chenheart
    chenheart Member Posts: 5,159 Member
    #5
    Well, personally, I don't
    Well, personally, I don't think that finding a lump, nor being diagnosed was much of reason to celebrate! My "cancerversary" is the day had my lumpectomy~ I had a cancerous mass and lymphnodes before surgery, but didn't when I woke up!!! :-)
  • sea60
    sea60 Member Posts: 2,613
    #6
    My last day of Chemo.
    Which was Valentine's Day, 2006.

    Hugs,

    Sylvia
  • Bella Luna
    Bella Luna Member Posts: 1,578 Member
    #7
    I use the date I was
    I use the date I was diagnosed as my Survivorship Anniversary. I made sure to celebrate the end of chemo, radiation, and Herceptin! June 1st will mark my 2nd anniversary-YIPPEE!
  • camul
    camul Member Posts: 2,537
    #8
    Mine is Feb 8th opening day
    Mine is Feb 8th opening day of the 2002 Olympics, got to see fireworks from the hospital window. This was the day of my mastectomy and the fireworks were to celebrate getting rid of the cancer.
  • Lynn Smith
    Lynn Smith Member Posts: 1,264 Member
    #9
    camul said:

    Mine is Feb 8th opening day
    Mine is Feb 8th opening day of the 2002 Olympics, got to see fireworks from the hospital window. This was the day of my mastectomy and the fireworks were to celebrate getting rid of the cancer.

    This is hard for me
    This is hard for me since my doctor put things off.BUT my tumor was found on July 2.My son's 40th Birthday. My dx was Aug 19 When I was told I had bc.So I celebrate Aug 19 as my cancerversary.Although when it came time for my mammo I told them I want it scheduled for January. That was 6 months after tumor was found and wanted to keep my appt then(like I did for many years) and not change to Feb. Of course my doctor agreed.

    My mammo is coming up July 12 but won't celebrate till Aug 19. Just over a month.

    I also had 2 surgeries within 2 weeks and had some celebrating then when the cancerous tumor was the only one but 2 benign tumors were found during the first and second surgery.That was a celebration to find out the last 2 found were benign.I was so scared.

    I know what you mean about WHEN we celebrate.It's hard for some of us.

    Lynn Smith
  • sbmly53
    sbmly53 Member Posts: 1,522
    #10
    Looking back
    I had my mammo on 10/28, stereotactic biopsy 11/14 and got the results 11/17. Surgery was 12/7 (a day that will live in infamy, 2 days before my 56th B'day).

    When I recall how the mammo went - I always get called in twice, but this time I was called in again and spoke with the radiologist. The films were up, they were pointing out the suspicious area, but I was either in denial or blissfully ignorant. But that day - 10.28.09, that is the one I go by.

    Sue
  • BlownAway60
    BlownAway60 Member Posts: 851
    #11
    sbmly53 said:

    Looking back
    I had my mammo on 10/28, stereotactic biopsy 11/14 and got the results 11/17. Surgery was 12/7 (a day that will live in infamy, 2 days before my 56th B'day).

    When I recall how the mammo went - I always get called in twice, but this time I was called in again and spoke with the radiologist. The films were up, they were pointing out the suspicious area, but I was either in denial or blissfully ignorant. But that day - 10.28.09, that is the one I go by.

    Sue

    Date I was dxd. July 14 09.
    Date I was dxd. July 14 09.

    Hugs

    Donna
  • joannstar
    joannstar Member Posts: 403 Member
    #12
    sbmly53 said:

    Looking back
    I had my mammo on 10/28, stereotactic biopsy 11/14 and got the results 11/17. Surgery was 12/7 (a day that will live in infamy, 2 days before my 56th B'day).

    When I recall how the mammo went - I always get called in twice, but this time I was called in again and spoke with the radiologist. The films were up, they were pointing out the suspicious area, but I was either in denial or blissfully ignorant. But that day - 10.28.09, that is the one I go by.

    Sue

    I understand your denial Sue...
    As I try to remember the chronology, I find it difficult although less than a year ago.
    My first mammo was 6/22/10, call back 6/29, sterotactic biopsy 7/16, 1st surgery 8/5, 2nd surgery (to get clean margins) 8/19. My last chemo was 1/9/11 and I finished rads on 4/1/11 which is the end of treatment because I am triple negative...so many dates to choose from!
    Thank you all for your thoughts!
    Hugs,
    JoAnn
  • csr771
    csr771 Member Posts: 117
    #13
    Good Question
    I was talking to one of my co-workers that has undergone a double mastectomy about this very subject. I think your cancerversary depends on you. We both decided that our cancerversary was when we started to actively fight the disease. Her date is when she started chemo and radiation since she had treatments to shrink tumors prior to surgery. Mine will be the date of my surgery since I did not have prior treatments, January 21st.
  • Brooklynchele
    Brooklynchele Member Posts: 123
    #14
    csr771 said:

    Good Question
    I was talking to one of my co-workers that has undergone a double mastectomy about this very subject. I think your cancerversary depends on you. We both decided that our cancerversary was when we started to actively fight the disease. Her date is when she started chemo and radiation since she had treatments to shrink tumors prior to surgery. Mine will be the date of my surgery since I did not have prior treatments, January 21st.

    Still confused then
    Wow this discussion is leaving me even more confused! My surgery was actually BEFORE my diagnosis. I was diagnosed 6 days after the surgery (from the pathology) and then went for a 2nd surgery a week and a half later - to get clear margins and do the sentinel node biopsy. But the second surgery showed that there was no cancer left which means that all of the cancer was actually gone (because of the surgery) BEFORE my diagnosis! So I still don't know whetehr to use the first surgical date or the date I received the path results. I'm inclined to think it's the surgical date... (Although they just found 2 masses by ultrasound in the "clear breast" that I get biopsied next week....)
  • skipper54
    skipper54 Member Posts: 936 Member
    #15
    Brooklynchele said:

    Still confused then
    Wow this discussion is leaving me even more confused! My surgery was actually BEFORE my diagnosis. I was diagnosed 6 days after the surgery (from the pathology) and then went for a 2nd surgery a week and a half later - to get clear margins and do the sentinel node biopsy. But the second surgery showed that there was no cancer left which means that all of the cancer was actually gone (because of the surgery) BEFORE my diagnosis! So I still don't know whetehr to use the first surgical date or the date I received the path results. I'm inclined to think it's the surgical date... (Although they just found 2 masses by ultrasound in the "clear breast" that I get biopsied next week....)

    Marking all the anniversaries
    Every one of the dates is a milestone for me. I was diagnosed 7/12/10 and started chemo the next week ending on 11/25. Mastectomy was 12/22 followed by rads that ended 3/30. I was pronounced in "clinical remission" at the end of chemo because the tumor and reduced in size. The tumor had clean margins but there were lymph nodes involved so on to the radiation. Every one of my dates is important. I don't celebrate the 7/12 date but I'm sure aware of it. And I guess there are things to celebrate after all. The reinforcement of how strong I truely am, how many friends I have, how my faith and prayers have held me up on the journey, etc.
  • CypressCynthia
    CypressCynthia Member Posts: 4,014 Member
    #16
    I usually use the date I was
    I usually use the date I was initially diagnosed February 25, 1987. Sometimes I use the date I was diagnosed with mets which was April 1, 2009 (yes, April Fools).
  • butterflylvr
    butterflylvr Member Posts: 944
    #17
    CypressCynthia said:

    I usually use the date I was
    I usually use the date I was initially diagnosed February 25, 1987. Sometimes I use the date I was diagnosed with mets which was April 1, 2009 (yes, April Fools).

    Date I was diagnosed October
    Date I was diagnosed October 26th, 2010 (My father's birthday).

    Lorrie
  • VickiSam
    VickiSam Member Posts: 9,079 Member
    #18
    butterflylvr said:

    Date I was diagnosed October
    Date I was diagnosed October 26th, 2010 (My father's birthday).

    Lorrie

    Like many others .. the date I was
    diagnosed -- 8/14/2009. I also celebrate the day I was told that I was dancing with NED, 1/17/2010 - as my re-birth-day. I remember my Breast Cancer Specialist giving me the news 1 week exactly -- after my bilateral --.


    Vicki Sam
  • mickeymom
    mickeymom Member Posts: 117
    #19
    War analogy
    I think of it sort of the way historians look at wars. I consider the anniversary date my diagnosis date (April 10th, 2009), mainly because that was the day I started my journey. I had my mastectomy on May 21st and we call the D-Day or Shock and Awe Day. Then Sept 24 is VC day (Victory over chemo) and December 7, my last day of radiation is Mission Accomplished!

    I agree with what so many of you have already said - everyday is an anniversary worth celebrating!
  • disneyfan2008
    disneyfan2008 Member Posts: 6,583 Member
    #20
    nothing...
    I am not sure which date to go by anyhow...yesterday was 3 yrs since my first radiation...April 3 was 3 yrs sugery and Jan 2008 all BC started

    The date that means the most to me is June 28, 02 my last treatment...

    I did treat myself to post treatment trip with friend to Disney world...
  • skipper54
    skipper54 Member Posts: 936 Member
    #21
    mickeymom said:

    War analogy
    I think of it sort of the way historians look at wars. I consider the anniversary date my diagnosis date (April 10th, 2009), mainly because that was the day I started my journey. I had my mastectomy on May 21st and we call the D-Day or Shock and Awe Day. Then Sept 24 is VC day (Victory over chemo) and December 7, my last day of radiation is Mission Accomplished!

    I agree with what so many of you have already said - everyday is an anniversary worth celebrating!

    Love the analogy!
    What a way to look at it. I"ll have to write that down so the chemo brain won't forget it.

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