Can anyone explain in simple terms - what a double or triple negative mean for all our newbies?

VickiSam
VickiSam Member Posts: 9,079 Member
edited March 2014 in Breast Cancer #1
I am sure I will screw it up ..or go on and on, as I tend to do .. Moopy once explained it very clearly..



Vicki Sam

Comments

  • seof
    seof Member Posts: 819 Member
    #2
    I bought a book from the ACS
    I bought a book from the ACS online bookstore called "A cancer journey" which gives very useful information. You can also look on the ACS website for definitions/descriptions/info. If your Dr. does not explain it in a way you can understand, ask again and again, or find another Dr. I would have to look it up in order to explain it, so I will not try.

    Best wishes to all, seof
  • Aortus
    Aortus Member Posts: 967
    #3
    Here you go...
    "Triple negative" breast cancer (TNBC) is so-called because it does not respond to any of the three basic categories - ER, PR, and HER - of hormonal breast cancer treatment. It is a particularly appalling term because with cancer, who needs MORE negatives in their life? If anything, "hormone negative" is both more accurate and less nasty-sounding.

    Last April, Mimi (who is, like my beloved Moopy, a "triple negative" BC survivor) and I sort of collaborated on an introduction to "triple negative" BC. You can find it by hitting the link at the bottom of my post. Ask more specific questions if you have them, and you will get answers.

    Finally, I should point out that last April, both Moopy and Mimi were finishing off chemo and getting ready to start rads. Not much fun, to say the least. This summer, both Moopy and Mimi are up and about and working and living and having fun and all around kicking @ss. There are plenty of other TNBC ladies on this board who are having the same experience right now. All the others will be having the same experience in the near future.

    LINK
  • heidijez
    heidijez Member Posts: 441
    #4
    Aortus said:

    Here you go...
    "Triple negative" breast cancer (TNBC) is so-called because it does not respond to any of the three basic categories - ER, PR, and HER - of hormonal breast cancer treatment. It is a particularly appalling term because with cancer, who needs MORE negatives in their life? If anything, "hormone negative" is both more accurate and less nasty-sounding.

    Last April, Mimi (who is, like my beloved Moopy, a "triple negative" BC survivor) and I sort of collaborated on an introduction to "triple negative" BC. You can find it by hitting the link at the bottom of my post. Ask more specific questions if you have them, and you will get answers.

    Finally, I should point out that last April, both Moopy and Mimi were finishing off chemo and getting ready to start rads. Not much fun, to say the least. This summer, both Moopy and Mimi are up and about and working and living and having fun and all around kicking @ss. There are plenty of other TNBC ladies on this board who are having the same experience right now. All the others will be having the same experience in the near future.

    LINK

    thank you so much for the link
    this was most helpful! i had posted a question sbout triple negative a couple of weeks ago, but only got a few responses. both of my oncologists have told me that it's not a bad thing to be triple negative, which eased my fears a bit. most of what i read here is that being triple negative is scary and not a good thing. i have inflammatory breast cancer, am triple negative and stage IIIc. i am fighting the good fight - first course of chemo (t/c)did not work and cancer had spread, am now going through second course (a/c)and am halfway through. if all goes well, i will have mastectomy in september followed by radiation and a delayed reconstruction. i wish immediate reconstruction was an option, but it's not possible.

    again, thank you for the information!
  • Aortus
    Aortus Member Posts: 967
    #5
    heidijez said:

    thank you so much for the link
    this was most helpful! i had posted a question sbout triple negative a couple of weeks ago, but only got a few responses. both of my oncologists have told me that it's not a bad thing to be triple negative, which eased my fears a bit. most of what i read here is that being triple negative is scary and not a good thing. i have inflammatory breast cancer, am triple negative and stage IIIc. i am fighting the good fight - first course of chemo (t/c)did not work and cancer had spread, am now going through second course (a/c)and am halfway through. if all goes well, i will have mastectomy in september followed by radiation and a delayed reconstruction. i wish immediate reconstruction was an option, but it's not possible.

    again, thank you for the information!

    Happy to help
    Sorry if I missed your earlier post, Heidi - Moopy and I try to keep an eye peeled for other TNs who may happen to post here. The amount of blatant crap out there on the Internet is astounding, and it's important to have pertinent information. And it's important to hear from real life TN survivors that there is a life after TN... a very happy one, in fact.

    Please keep in touch and let us know how you're doing, okay? And if you have any questions whatsoever, please ask.

    Best,
    Joe

    PS: that "Jez" sounds suspiciously Polish to me... I'm only a half-breed Polack myself, though.
  • MAJW
    MAJW Member Posts: 2,510 Member
    #6
    Aortus said:

    Here you go...
    "Triple negative" breast cancer (TNBC) is so-called because it does not respond to any of the three basic categories - ER, PR, and HER - of hormonal breast cancer treatment. It is a particularly appalling term because with cancer, who needs MORE negatives in their life? If anything, "hormone negative" is both more accurate and less nasty-sounding.

    Last April, Mimi (who is, like my beloved Moopy, a "triple negative" BC survivor) and I sort of collaborated on an introduction to "triple negative" BC. You can find it by hitting the link at the bottom of my post. Ask more specific questions if you have them, and you will get answers.

    Finally, I should point out that last April, both Moopy and Mimi were finishing off chemo and getting ready to start rads. Not much fun, to say the least. This summer, both Moopy and Mimi are up and about and working and living and having fun and all around kicking @ss. There are plenty of other TNBC ladies on this board who are having the same experience right now. All the others will be having the same experience in the near future.

    LINK

    Triple - here too.....
    Yes, tons of us that are triple - are out and about and kicking butt! I was told that being triple - was not a "good" kind of bc......there's a good one?????? But it is one type of BC that responds VERY VERY well to chemo.....We're stuck with the type we get and we get on with treatment.......On one hand I wish we were candidates for Herceptin or Tamoxifin......but then I've heard stories of the hardships some have taking those drugs......so, it's a crap shoot.......it is what it is......but there is LIFE and a GOOD LIFE after triple -...I'm back to "normal" ( I dare say if I were ever NORMAL before hand...tee-hee) after finishing all treatment last NOV....I still have some residual fatigue from the radiation, but it is totally manageable.....I don't live with the "what ifs"....Nothing I can do about it if it comes back, anymore than I could have prevented it in the first place, so I just go about enjoying life daily for no one knows what tomorrow may bring.....I'm sort of like the book and movie......"Eat Love Pray"........
    Peace to all......
  • VickiSam
    VickiSam Member Posts: 9,079 Member
    #7
    MAJW said:

    Triple - here too.....
    Yes, tons of us that are triple - are out and about and kicking butt! I was told that being triple - was not a "good" kind of bc......there's a good one?????? But it is one type of BC that responds VERY VERY well to chemo.....We're stuck with the type we get and we get on with treatment.......On one hand I wish we were candidates for Herceptin or Tamoxifin......but then I've heard stories of the hardships some have taking those drugs......so, it's a crap shoot.......it is what it is......but there is LIFE and a GOOD LIFE after triple -...I'm back to "normal" ( I dare say if I were ever NORMAL before hand...tee-hee) after finishing all treatment last NOV....I still have some residual fatigue from the radiation, but it is totally manageable.....I don't live with the "what ifs"....Nothing I can do about it if it comes back, anymore than I could have prevented it in the first place, so I just go about enjoying life daily for no one knows what tomorrow may bring.....I'm sort of like the book and movie......"Eat Love Pray"........
    Peace to all......

    Aotrus aka Moopy's better half, or it is the other way
    around .. anyways - A big THANK YOU .. for the posting! It will help many women.

    Your Russian sister in Pink --


    Vicki Shubin Samaduroff

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