surgery & treatment indecision

BeachIt
BeachIt Member Posts: 17
edited March 2014 in Breast Cancer #1
Hi there, I am new to this stuff, so please bear with me. I was diagnosed with BC at the end of July 2009. I have invasive cancer and the tumor is very close to the chest wall, though it is only 1 centimeter. I had appointments with a surgeon, plastic surgeon and oncologist. I was told that if I had a lumpectomy that I would have chemo and radiation, but if I had a mastectomy I could immediately start reconstruction and would only need chemo. I went for a 2nd opinion and was told that even if I had a mastectomy I would need radiation because of the location of the tumor and reconstruction would not start until after radiation was finished. I was wondering if anyone else has been in this situation and what you did. Also, I have another appointment with the first surgeon to ask additional questions. Are there any questions any of you wished you had asked? Thanks for any help you can give me.

Comments

  • susie09
    susie09 Member Posts: 2,930
    #2
    Hi
    Hi Beachlt. I want to welcome you to the site. Sorry for the reason that you are here. But, you will find amazing bc survivors here to help you. I had a lumpectomy followed by radiation treatments 6 weeks later. I am sure someone here can answer your questions. Good luck with your plastic surgeon appointment.

    ♠♣ Susie ♠♣
  • BeachIt
    BeachIt Member Posts: 17
    #3
    susie09 said:

    Hi
    Hi Beachlt. I want to welcome you to the site. Sorry for the reason that you are here. But, you will find amazing bc survivors here to help you. I had a lumpectomy followed by radiation treatments 6 weeks later. I am sure someone here can answer your questions. Good luck with your plastic surgeon appointment.

    ♠♣ Susie ♠♣

    Thanks for the reply and the
    Thanks for the reply and the support. I didn't really know if anyone would reply. Did you also have chemo or just radiation? How bad was radiation? Any info is certainly appreciated. Thanks again.
  • RE
    RE Member Posts: 4,591 Member
    #4
    Glad you found us!
    I am so sorry you have to deal with this but glad you found this site as there are a lot of very caring folks here. Take a trusted family member or friend with you to your appointment to help you remember what the doctor tells you because this is so stressful we tend not to hear all they say and we tend to forget what to ask so it's a good idea to start writing down all your questions so you can take them with you as well. I have had cancer several times; the first time I had the lumpectomy, chemo and rads, the last time I had a mastectomy and chemo no rads. Ask your doctor if having the mastectomy will give you better survival odds over the lumpectomy, ask them what stage you are, how will radiation treatments affect reconstruction. Please come back and let us know how you are doing.

    Hugs,

    RE
  • susie09
    susie09 Member Posts: 2,930
    #5
    BeachIt said:

    Thanks for the reply and the
    Thanks for the reply and the support. I didn't really know if anyone would reply. Did you also have chemo or just radiation? How bad was radiation? Any info is certainly appreciated. Thanks again.

    Hi Beachlt
    You are welcome Beachlt. That is why we are here, to support one another. I didn't have chemo, just radiation. The radiation was fine. I got a little pink towards the end, but, never even burnt. It was tiring, but, I went to bed early and took naps and did ok. It is very doable. So, don't worry about radiation. My rads oncologist saw me twice a week, just to make sure that my skin was doing well. They keep a good eye on you. Good luck!

    ♠♣ Susie ♠♣
  • Christmas Girl
    Christmas Girl Member Posts: 3,682 Member
    #6
    Welcome, Beachlt
    Only you can make this extremely important decision. Perhaps you do need some additional information.

    Best wishes to you.
  • survivorbc09
    survivorbc09 Member Posts: 4,374 Member
    #7
    Christmas Girl said:

    Welcome, Beachlt
    Only you can make this extremely important decision. Perhaps you do need some additional information.

    Best wishes to you.

    Hi Beachlt and welcome. I
    Hi Beachlt and welcome. I think the chances of a recurrence are the same with a mastectomy as with a lumpectomy. Some women can't have a lumpectomy though. I had rads after my lumpectomy and did just fine. Good luck!

    Hugs!
  • DianeBC
    DianeBC Member Posts: 3,881 Member
    #8
    Christmas Girl said:

    Welcome, Beachlt
    Only you can make this extremely important decision. Perhaps you do need some additional information.

    Best wishes to you.

    Hey Beachlt. Just want to
    Hey Beachlt. Just want to say hi and to wish you good luck. Keep us updated on your progress.

    Hugs, Diane ♥
  • tjhay
    tjhay Member Posts: 655
    #9
    DianeBC said:

    Hey Beachlt. Just want to
    Hey Beachlt. Just want to say hi and to wish you good luck. Keep us updated on your progress.

    Hugs, Diane ♥

    Hi BeachIt, I am so sorry
    Hi BeachIt, I am so sorry that you have had to join our family, that being said welcome to your second home.
    I had a lumpdectomy with chemo and radiation, them chemo was rough, however it is doable, they will give you meds to fight off the nausea and if they don't do the job well enough tell so they can give you another kind that will work.
    Remember that you have all of us sending you love and hope, along with positive thoughts.
    tj

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