prognosis

nancien
nancien Member Posts: 1
edited March 2014 in Breast Cancer #1
My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer last month. The mass was large. Last week she had a masectomy. A week later the doctor told her that he only got "The tip of the iceberg." The tumor he removed was 2 inches across and 27 lymph nodes have been affected. Today she starts chemo. After chemo, she will have radiation. I want to know if anyone can survive this much cancer or is her doctor playing God? She is 70 years old and in remarkable health except for the cancer. I don't want her to suffer through the treatments if there is no reasonable hope. She lives in another state and is being treated in a military hospital.

Comments

  • jmears
    jmears Member Posts: 266
    #2
    I believe there is always hope because new medications and drugs are being discovered everyday and every person is different and will react differently to treatment. Lance Armstrong, three time Tour de France winner had testicular cancer (before he won the races). In his book "It's Not About the Bike" he tells about the awful side effects of the treatment. He had mets to his stomach, lungs, and brain. I don't want to ruin the book if anyone wants to read it ... so I'll just say his survival rate was low. And ... look what he's done!! So I say if your Mom wants to fight ... she should go all out. Good luck, my thoughts are with you. Jamie
  • jmears
    jmears Member Posts: 266
    #3
    I believe there is always hope because new medications and drugs are being discovered everyday and every person is different and will react differently to treatment. Lance Armstrong, three time Tour de France winner had testicular cancer (before he won the races). In his book "It's Not About the Bike" he tells about the awful side effects of the treatment. He had mets to his stomach, lungs, and brain. I don't want to ruin the book if anyone wants to read it ... so I'll just say his survival rate was low. And ... look what he's done!! So I say if your Mom wants to fight ... she should go all out. Good luck, my thoughts are with you. Jamie
  • shirlann
    shirlann Member Posts: 229
    #4
    Hi, dear, these are very hard days for you and your mom. This diagnosis is tough, but I would buy Dr. Susan Love's Breast Book, get informed and you will find that some people with large cancers and node involvement do very well for many years. ALso, some of the biggest cancers are "lazy", this is hard to predict which makes this disease so damnable. On the other hand, some women with pin size cancers have mets in a matter of weeks? It is not all black and white. I would certainly take your doctors advise and go on with what he suggests, this is not Russia, if she does not respond well, or is too miserable, you can always stop treatment, or even delay it. In some people, their cancers respond remarkably and sometimes shrink to very small size, giving them many months of good life. These are all tough decisions, but I think if I were you I would try and see what happens, the fact that she is in good health otherwise bodes well. You and she and the doc will know before too much time if things are going well, I would give it a chance. God bless you and keep you in His arms. Shirlann
  • 24242
    24242 Member Posts: 1,398 Member
    #5
    It often is found that cancer in older women is not as aggressive as that found in younger women especially those found in women bellow 40. No one knows for sure what the outcome would be nanci, I think they feel she has a great chance if they are prepared to all this.
    Our thoughts a prayers will be with you and your mother. No one knows for sure anything, that is what I believe.
    You are a wonderful daughter,
    hang in there,
    Tara
  • lilmermaid
    lilmermaid Member Posts: 31
    #6
    Hi my name is Sylvia. One of my dearest fiends was diagnosed with breast cancer about8 years ago. She had 27 lymphnodes positive. The Drs. gave her acouple of months to live. This is 8 years later and she is in great health. Yearly she goes through all the scans and she is totally cancer free. She did get the chemo andthe radiation. She and her family are very very devout people. They always told me that they believed the Drs. were wrong because only God can make that judgment. They always knew in their hearts that she would be healed. Trust in God and know that I and everyone on this net work are praying for your mother. Remember that prayer is the most powerful force on earth and everyones prayers are powerful. God bless
    Sylvia

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